System and method for providing awards based on dynamic reels

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods which provide a player zero, one or more awards based on a variable quantity of symbol display positions associated with one or more reels.

BACKGROUND

Gaming machines may provide players awards in primary games. Gamingmachines generally require the player to place a wager to activate theprimary game. The award may be based on the player obtaining a winningsymbol or symbol combination and on the amount of the wager.

BRIEF SUMMARY

In certain embodiments, the present disclosure relates to a gamingsystem including a processor, and a memory device which stores aplurality of instructions. When executed by the processor, theinstructions cause the processor to cause a display, by a display deviceand for a first play of a game, of a first plurality of symbols at afirst plurality of symbol display positions associated with a pluralityof reels. When executed by the processor responsive to an occurrence ofa symbol display position quantity modification event associated with areel of the plurality of reels, the instructions cause the processor tomodify a quantity of the symbol display positions associated with thatreel. When executed by the processor responsive to the modified quantityof symbol display positions associated with that reel being a designatedquantity of symbol display positions, the instructions cause theprocessor to trigger a secondary event associated with a position of asecondary event zone associated with that reel, and cause a display, bythe display device, of the triggered secondary event. When executed bythe processor responsive to the modified quantity of symbol displaypositions associated with that reel not being the designated quantity ofsymbol display positions, the instructions cause the processor to causea display, by the display device and for a second play of the game, of asecond plurality of symbols at a second plurality of symbol displaypositions associated with the plurality of reels, the second pluralityof symbol display positions being based on the modified quantity ofsymbol display positions associated with that reel.

In certain embodiments, the present disclosure relates to a gamingsystem including a processor, and a memory device which stores aplurality of instructions. When executed by the processor responsive toan occurrence of a reel and secondary event zone display event, theinstructions cause the processor to cause a display, by a displaydevice, of a plurality of reels and a secondary event zone comprising aplurality of positions, wherein each of the positions of the secondaryevent zone is associated with one of the plurality of reels and each ofthe plurality of reels is associated with a first quantity of initiallydisplayed symbol display positions and a first quantity of initiallynon-displayed symbol display positions. When executed by the processorresponsive to a reel of the plurality of reels being subsequentlyassociated with a second quantity of displayed symbol display positions,the instructions cause the processor to trigger a secondary eventassociated with the position of the secondary event zone associated withthat reel, wherein the second quantity of displayed symbol displaypositions is equal to the first quantity of initially displayed symboldisplay positions and the first quantity of initially non-displayedsymbol display positions.

In certain embodiments, the present disclosure relates to a method ofoperating a gaming system including displaying, by a display device andfor a first play of a game, a first plurality of symbols at a firstplurality of symbol display positions associated with a plurality ofreels. Responsive to an occurrence of a symbol display position quantitymodification event associated with a reel of the plurality of reels, themethod includes modifying, by a processor, a quantity of the symboldisplay positions associated with that reel, and responsive to themodified quantity of symbol display positions associated with that reelbeing a designated quantity of symbol display positions, triggering, bythe processor, a secondary event associated with a position of asecondary event zone associated with that reel, and displaying, by thedisplay device, the triggered secondary event. Responsive to themodified quantity of symbol display positions associated with that reelnot being the designated quantity of symbol display positions, themethod includes displaying, by the display device and for a second playof the game, a second plurality of symbols at a second plurality ofsymbol display positions associated with the plurality of reels, thesecond plurality of symbol display positions being based on the modifiedquantity of symbol display positions associated with that reel.

Additional features are described herein, and will be apparent from thefollowing Detailed Description and the figures.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIGS. 1A and 1B (collectively FIG. 1 ) are flow charts of an exampleprocess for operating a gaming system which provides zero, one or moreawards based on the quantity of symbol display positions associated withone or more reels.

FIGS. 2A, 2B, 2C, 2D and 2E are front views of one embodiment of thegaming system disclosed herein illustrating the triggering of asecondary event based on the quantity of symbol display positionsassociated with one or more reels.

FIG. 3 is a schematic block diagram of one embodiment of an electronicconfiguration of an example gaming system disclosed herein.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are perspective views of example alternative embodimentsof the gaming system disclosed herein.

FIG. 4C is a front view of an example personal gaming device of thegaming system disclosed herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Awards Based on Dynamic Reels

In various embodiments, the present disclosure relates generally tosystems and methods which provide a player zero, one or more awardsbased on a variable quantity of symbol display positions associated withone or more reels.

In certain embodiments, the gaming system displays a plurality of reelsinitially associated with a default quantity of symbol displaypositions. The gaming system also displays a secondary event zoneassociated with the plurality of reels, wherein the secondary event zoneis spaced apart from the initially displayed symbol display positionsassociated with the plurality of reels by a plurality of initiallynon-displayed symbol display positions also associated with theplurality of reels. The secondary event zone includes a plurality ofpositions associated with a plurality of different secondary events,such as additional awards or triggers of additional games. Each positionof the secondary event zone is associated with one or more of theplurality of reels.

In operation of these embodiments, upon a game triggering event, thegaming system randomly generates a plurality of symbols at the pluralityof displayed symbol display positions associated with the plurality ofreels. In addition to displaying the plurality of symbols at thedisplayed symbol display positions associated with the reels, upon anoccurrence of a symbol display position quantity modification eventassociated with a reel, such as the generation of a designated symbol onone of the reels, the gaming system modifies the quantity of symboldisplay positions associated with one or more of the reels. In one suchembodiment, the occurrence of a symbol display position quantitymodification event results in the gaming system adding one or moresymbol display positions in association with one or more reels. In thisembodiment, the gaming systems adds a symbol display position associatedwith a reel by displaying or otherwise revealing an initiallynon-displayed symbol display position associated with that reel. Inanother such embodiment, the occurrence of a symbol display positionquantity modification event results in the gaming system removing one ormore symbol display positions in association with one or more reels. Inthis embodiment, the gaming systems removes or otherwise hides a symboldisplay position associated with a reel by ceasing to display thatsymbol display position associated with that reel.

Following any modification of the quantity of symbol display positionsassociated with any of the reels, the gaming system determines if asecondary event zone triggering event has occurred in association withany of the reels. In certain embodiments, the gaming system determinesif any of the reels have grown in size, via the adding of associatedsymbol display positions, to reach the secondary event zone, and morespecifically to reach a position of the secondary event zone associatedwith that reel. That is, the gaming system determines if any reels haveexpanded by a quantity of displayed symbol display positions such thatthe position of the secondary event zone associated with a reel is nolonger spaced apart from that reel (by one or more non-initiallydisplayed symbol display positions).

In these embodiments, if the gaming system determines that a secondaryevent zone triggering event has occurred in association with a reel, thegaming system triggers the secondary event associated with the positionof the secondary event zone associated with that reel. For example, ifthe first position of the secondary event zone associated with a firstreel is associated with an unlimited free spins game and through aseries of one or more symbol display position quantity modificationevents, the first reel has expanded in size (through the addition ofdisplayed symbol display positions associated with that first reel) toreach the first position of the secondary event zone, the gaming systemtriggers a play of the unlimited free spins game. In this example, theunlimited free spins game proceeds with a plurality of reels eachinitially associated with a default quantity of symbol display positionswherein symbol display positions are added and/or removed from beingassociated with the reels until one of the reels reaches a terminationzone.

On the other hand, if the gaming system determines that no secondaryevent zone triggering event has occurred in association with a reel, thegaming system causes the quantity of symbol display positions currentlyassociated with that reel to persist until a reel reset event occurs. Inthese embodiments, following the occurrence of a symbol display positionquantity modification event which adds one or more displayed symboldisplay positions to a reel, even if that reel has not reached anassociated position of the secondary event zone, the gaming systemretains such added displayed symbol display positions for anotheroccurrence of a symbol display position quantity modification event andanother opportunity to cause a secondary event zone triggering event tooccur. Such a persistence feature provides that a player's gamingexperience builds upon itself to further engage the player (or otherplayers that happen to take over a prior player's position regarding thestate of one or more expanded reels). Moreover, since the gaming systemdisplays symbols at each displayed symbol display position, thepersistence feature provides that even if a player does not trigger asecondary event associated with a position of the secondary event zone,one or more subsequent games will have a greater quantity of symbolsgenerated, via the persistently expanded reel, and thus a greaterquantity of award opportunities.

While certain embodiments described below are directed to a primarygame, such as a reel game including a plurality of reels associated withvariable quantities of symbol display positions, it should beappreciated that such embodiments may additionally or alternatively beemployed in association with a secondary game, such as a bonus gameincluding a plurality of reels associated with variable quantities ofsymbol display positions. Additionally, while the player's creditbalance, the player's wager, and any awards are displayed as an amountof monetary credits or currency in certain of the embodiments describedbelow, one or more of such player's credit balance, such player's wager,and any awards provided to such a player may be for non-monetarycredits, promotional credits, and/or player tracking points or credits.

While certain embodiments described below are directed to varying thequantity of symbol display positions associated with zero, one or morereels, it should be appreciated that such variance may additionally oralternatively be employed in association with other game elements, suchas varying the quantity of playing card positions which display playingcards, varying the quantity of keno number positions which display kenonumbers or varying the quantity of bingo card positions which displaybingo numbers. Furthermore, the term “EGM” is used herein to refer toany suitable electronic gaming machine which enables a player to playone or more games, wherein the EGM comprises, but is not limited to: aslot machine, a video poker machine, a video lottery terminal, aterminal associated with an electronic table game, a video keno machine,a video bingo machine located on a casino floor, a sports bettingterminal, or a kiosk, such as a sports betting kiosk.

FIG. 1 is a flowchart of an example process or method of operating thegaming system of the present disclosure. In various embodiments, theprocess is represented by a set of instructions stored in one or morememories and executed by one or more processors. Although the process isdescribed with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. 1 , many otherprocesses of performing the acts associated with this illustratedprocess may be employed. For example, the order of certain of theillustrated blocks or diamonds may be changed, certain of theillustrated blocks or diamonds may be optional, or certain of theillustrated blocks or diamonds may not be employed.

In different embodiments, upon an occurrence of a reel and secondaryevent zone display event, as indicated in block 102 of FIG. 1 , thegaming system displays a plurality of reels initially associated with adefault quantity of displayed symbol display positions and a defaultquantity of non-displayed symbol display positions. For example, as seenin FIG. 2A, the gaming system displays a plurality of reels 202 a to 202e associated with a plurality of initially displayed symbol displaypositions 204 a to 204 o and a plurality of initially non-displayedsymbol display positions 206 a to 206 y. In this example, each reel isassociated with a default quantity of three initially displayed symboldisplay positions and a default quantity of five initially non-displayedsymbol display positions. It should be appreciated that while initiallydisplayed as a 3×5 symbol display position matrix with five initiallynon-displayed symbol display positions per reel, any suitableconfiguration of initially displayed symbol display positions andinitially non-displayed symbol display positions may be utilized.

In addition to displaying the plurality of reels, upon the occurrence ofthe reel and secondary event zone display event, as also indicated inblock 102, the gaming system display a secondary event zone associatedwith the plurality of reels. The secondary event zone includes aplurality of positions associated with a plurality of differentsecondary event zone outcomes, wherein each position of the secondaryevent zone is associated with at least one of the plurality of reels. Inthese embodiments, the gaming system displays the secondary event zoneas spaced apart from the initially displayed symbol display positionsassociated with the plurality of reels, wherein for each reel, thedefault quantity of non-displayed symbol display positions associatedwith that reel occupies the space between the secondary event zone andthe symbol display position associated with that reel displayed closestto the secondary event zone. For example, as seen in FIG. 2A, the gamingsystem displays a secondary event zone 208 including a plurality ofpositions 210 a to 210 e that each display a secondary event zoneoutcome 212 a to 212 e, such as a triggering of a secondary game 212 a,a static award of ten-thousand credits 212 b or an incrementingprogressive ward 212 c. It should be appreciated that while thisillustrated example displays the secondary event zone above the reels,any suitable way of displaying the secondary event zone relative to theplurality of symbol display positions of the reels may be employed inassociation with the present disclosure. For example, a play of aprimary game includes displaying the secondary event zone above thereels while a play of a secondary game includes displaying the secondaryevent zone below the reels.

In certain embodiments, the reel and secondary event zone display eventoccurs based on an event independent of any displayed event associatedwith any play of any game. In one such embodiment, the reel andsecondary event zone display event occurs upon a suitable power-up eventof the gaming system. In this embodiment, in conjunction with the gamingsystem otherwise being placed in a state or condition to accept wagerson the plays of the primary game, the gaming system displays thesecondary event zone and the plurality of reels associated with adefault quantity of symbol display positions. In another suchembodiment, the reel and secondary event zone display event occurs upona suitable card-in event of the gaming system. In this embodiment, uponthe gaming system identifying a player in association with a playertracking system, the gaming system displays the secondary event zone andthe plurality of reels associated with a default quantity of symboldisplay positions. In these embodiments, the gaming system displays to aplayer (or a passerby) the secondary event zone and the plurality ofreels associated with a default quantity of symbol display positionsprior to one or more plays of the game. In another embodiment, the reeland secondary event zone display event occurs based on a displayed eventassociated with a play of a game. In this embodiment, one play of a gameresults in the display to a player (or a passerby) of the secondaryevent zone and the plurality of reels associated with a default quantityof symbol display positions.

In addition to displaying the secondary event zone and the plurality ofreels, upon an occurrence of a game triggering event, the gaming systemtriggers a play of a game as indicated in block 104 of FIG. 1 .

In certain embodiments, the game comprises a play of a primary game,such as a primary wagering game, wherein the game triggering eventincludes the placement of a wager on the play of the primary game. Incertain embodiments, the game comprises a play of a secondary game, suchas a free spins game, wherein the game triggering event occurs based ona displayed event associated with a play of a primary game. In certainembodiments wherein the game comprises a secondary game, such as a freespins game, wherein the game triggering event occurs based on an eventindependent of any displayed event associated with the play of theprimary game.

For the triggered play of the game, the gaming system determines anddisplays a plurality of symbols at the plurality of displayed symboldisplay positions associated with the plurality of reels as indicated inblocks 106 and 108 of FIG. 1 . For example, as seen in FIG. 2B, for thetriggered play of the game, the gaming system randomly determines aplurality of symbols 214 a to 214 o and displays such randomlydetermined symbols at the plurality of displayed symbol displaypositions 204 a to 204 o associated with the plurality of reels 202 a to202 e. It should be appreciated that as the quantity of displayed symboldisplay positions associated with one or more reels fluctuates from playto play of a game, the quantity of symbols displayed at such symboldisplay positions (and thus the quantity of opportunities to formwinning symbol combinations) also fluctuates from play to play of thegame.

Following the determination and display of the plurality of symbols, thegaming system determines and displays any awards associated with thedisplayed symbols as indicated in blocks 110 and 112 of FIG. 1 . Forexample, as seen in FIG. 2B, the gaming system determines that none ofthe displayed symbols formed any winning symbol combinations.

In addition to determining and displaying a plurality of symbols at theplurality of displayed symbol display positions associated with theplurality of reels, the gaming system determines if a symbol displayposition quantity modification event occurred in association with any ofthe reels as indicated in diamond 114 of FIG. 1 . In certainembodiments, the symbol display position quantity modification eventoccurs based on a displayed event. For example, as seen in FIG. 2B,since displayed symbol display position 204 m displayed a reel expansionsymbol (e.g., the illustrated UP symbol 214 m), the gaming systemdetermines that a symbol display position quantity modification eventoccurred in association with reel 202 e. In another embodiment, thesymbol display position quantity modification event occurs based on anevent independent of any displayed event.

Upon a determination that the symbol display position quantitymodification event does not occur in association with any of the reels,the gaming system terminates the triggered play of the game as indicatedin block 116. In this embodiment, since the quantity of symbol displaypositions associated with each of the reels is not modified for thetriggered play of the game, none of the reels will reach the secondaryevent zone and no additional awards or additional award opportunitieswill be triggered, based on the size of the dynamic reels, inassociation with the play of the game.

On the other hand, if the symbol display position quantity modificationevent occurs in association with at least one of the reels, as indicatedin block 118, for each reel associated with the occurrence of the symboldisplay position quantity modification event, the gaming system modifiesthe quantity of symbol display positions associated with that reel.

In one embodiment, for each reel associated with the occurrence of thesymbol display position quantity modification event, the modification ofthe quantity of symbol display positions includes adding one or moresymbol display positions in association with that reel. That is, thegaming system adds one or more symbol display positions in associationwith a reel such that the symbol display positions associated with thatreel extend closer to the position of the secondary event zoneassociated with that reel. In one such embodiment, such a modificationincludes displaying one or more initially non-displayed symbol displaypositions associated with that reel. For example, as seen in FIG. 2C,following the display of the reel expansion symbol 214 m at symboldisplay position 204 m associated with reel 202 e, the gaming systemdisplays or otherwise activates previously non-displayed symbol displaypositions 206 x and 206 y. In this example, the display of a previouslynon-displayed symbol position includes the display of symbol 214 p and214 q at now-displayed symbol display positions 206 x and 206 y,respectively.

In another embodiment, for each reel associated with the occurrence ofthe symbol display position quantity modification event, themodification of the quantity of symbol display positions includesremoving one or more symbol display positions in association with thatreel. That is, the gaming system removes one or more symbol displaypositions in association with a reel such that the symbol displaypositions associated with that reel extend further from the position ofthe secondary event zone associated with that reel. In one suchembodiment, such a modification includes hiding or otherwise ceasing todisplay one or more displayed symbol display positions associated withthat reel.

In certain embodiments, the gaming system randomly determines thequantity of symbol display positions added (or removed) in associationwith one or more reels. In certain embodiments, the gaming systemdetermines the quantity of symbol display positions added (or removed)in association with one or more reels based on an amount of a wagerplaced. In certain embodiments, the gaming system determines thequantity of symbol display positions added (or removed) in associationwith one or more reels based on the status of the player.

Following the modification of the quantity of symbol display positionsassociated with one or more of the reels, the gaming system determinesif any of the reels reach any of the positions of the secondary eventzone as indicated in diamond 120 of FIG. 1 . That is, for each reel, thegaming system determines if a secondary event zone triggering eventoccurs for that reel based on whether or not a designated quantity ofsymbol display positions have been added in association with that reel.In these embodiments, since the secondary event zone is spaced apartfrom the initially displayed symbol display positions associated withthe plurality of reels, a secondary event zone triggering event occursin association with a reel if each of the initial quantity ofnon-displayed symbol display positions associated with that reel (whichoccupy the space between the secondary event zone and the symbol displayposition associated with that reel displayed closest to the secondaryevent zone) have been subsequently displayed and thus the gaming systemdisplays the reel extending to the secondary event zone.

If the gaming system determined that none of the reels reach any of thepositions of the secondary event zone, the gaming system terminates thetriggered play of the game as indicated in block 116. For example, asseen in FIG. 2C after displaying two previously hidden symbol displaypositions 206 x and 206 y associated with reel 202 e, the gaming systemdetermines that reel 202 e has not expanded enough to reach associatedposition 210 e of the secondary event zone 208.

In addition to terminating the play of the game, the gaming systemdetermines if a reel reset event occurred in association with any of thereels as indicated in diamond 122 of FIG. 1 . In certain embodiments,the reel reset event occurs based on a displayed event. In one suchembodiment, as described in more detail below, a reel reset event occursbased on one or more reels expanding in size (via the addition of symboldisplay positions) enough to reach a position of the secondary eventzone. In another embodiment, the reel reset event occurs based on anevent independent of any displayed event.

If the gaming system determines that a reel reset event occurred inassociation with at least one of the reels, for that reel, the gamingsystem displays that reel in association with the default quantity ofdisplayed symbol display positions and the default quantity ofnon-displayed symbol display positions as indicated in block 124. Thatis, the gaming system removes or otherwise hides one or more previouslydisplayed symbol display positions in association with that reel suchthat the now currently displayed symbol display positions associatedwith that reel extend further from the position of the secondary eventzone associated with that reel.

In one such embodiment, a reel reset event occurs when a player changesa wager level of a play of a game. In this embodiment, if a reel is inan expanded state (i.e., one or more initially non-displayed symboldisplay positions associated with that reel are currently displayed)when a player ends his/her gaming session, that reel persists in theexpanded state for another player whom plays the game at the same wagerlevel, wherein if that player (or the other player) changes the wagerlevel, the gaming system reverts back to the default quantity ofdisplayed symbol display positions in associated with the changed towager level. In different embodiments, different wager levels have thesame or different quantities of initially displayed (and/or initiallynon-displayed) symbol display positions.

Following the occurrence of the reel reset event and the gaming systemdisplaying one or more reels reverting to a default configuration ofbeing associated with a default quantity of displayed symbol displaypositions and a default quantity of non-displayed symbol displaypositions, the gaming system returns to block 104 to await anotheroccurrence of the game triggering event. Alternatively, if the gamingsystem determines that a reel reset event did not occur in associationwith at least one of the reels, for that reel, the gaming system returnsto block 104 to await another occurrence of the game initiation event.In this situation, the gaming system determining not to reset any of thequantity of symbol display positions associated with any of the reelsresults in one or more reels being displayed in an expanded state overmultiple plays of a game. Such a configuration provides that once a reelhas been expanded via adding one or more symbol display positionsassociated with that reel, that reel remains or persists in an expandedstate for additional plays of the game until a reel reset event occurs.This persistence element provides that a player's gaming experiencebuilds upon itself to further engage the player (or other players thathappen to take over a prior player's position regarding the state of oneor more expanded reels). Moreover, since the gaming system displayssymbols at each displayed symbol display position, the persistencefeature provides that even if a player does not trigger an eventassociated with a position of the secondary event zone, one or moresubsequent games will have a greater quantity of symbols generated, viathe persistently expanded reel, and thus a greater quantity of awardopportunities.

Returning to the determination of if any of the reels reach any of thepositions of the secondary event zone of diamond 120 of FIG. 1 , if thegaming system determined that at least one of the reels reaches at leastone of the positions of the secondary event zone, for each of suchreels, the gaming system determines the outcome associated with thereached position of the secondary event zone and causes the determinedoutcome to be provided as indicated in blocks 126 and 128 of FIG. 1 . Inthis embodiment, following the modification of the quantity of symboldisplay positions associated with one or more of the reels, if at leastone of such expanded reels caused a triggering event to occur inassociation with the secondary event zone, the gaming system proceeds toprovide the outcome associated with the position of the secondary eventzone associated with that expanded reel. For example, as seen in FIG.2D, after a series of additional plays of the game occur (without anyresetting of the quantity of symbol display positions of any of thereels) and after adding various symbol display positions to variousreels, upon the occurrence of another reel expansion symbol 21400 at nowdisplayed symbol display position 206 w associated with reel 202 e, thegaming system displays or otherwise activates previously non-displayedsymbol display position 206 u (as seen in FIG. 2E). In this example, thegaming system then determines that the addition of symbol displayposition 206 u to reel 202 e results in reel 202 e expanding enough toreach the position 210 e associated with outcome 212 e of secondaryevent zone 208. In this example, the gaming system proceeds to trigger aplay of an unlimited free spins game associated with the reachedposition of the secondary event zone.

Following providing the outcome associated with the position of thesecondary event zone associated with the reel which has expanded enoughto reach the secondary event zone, the gaming system terminates thetriggered play of the game as indicated in block 116 and determines if areel reset event occurred in association with any of the reels asdescribed above. In one such embodiment, a reel reaching the secondaryevent zone corresponds with the occurrence of a reel reset event suchthat the reel then reverts to the default quantity of initiallydisplayed symbol display positions and the default quantity of initiallynon-displayed symbol display positions. In another such embodiment, areel reaching the secondary event zone corresponds with the occurrenceof a reel reset event such that all of the reels then revert to thedefault quantity of initially displayed symbol display positions and thedefault quantity of initially non-displayed symbol display positions.

In certain embodiments, the outcome associated with a position of thesecondary event zone includes a plurality of plays of a free spins game.In one such embodiment, the free spins game is an unlimited free spinsgame. In this embodiment, the reels revert back to the default quantityof initially displayed and initially non-displayed symbol displaypositions and the unlimited free spins game continues until one or moreof the reels reach one or more of the positions of the secondary eventzone. As such, the secondary event zone of the unlimited free spins gameis a free spins game termination zone wherein one or more positionsresult in the termination of the unlimited free spins game (and zero,one or more positions result in the retriggering of the unlimited freespins game; zero, one or more positions result in a reduction of thequantity of symbol display positions associated with one or more of thereels; and/or zero, one or more of the positions result in an award). Assuch, the goal of the unlimited free spins game is to continue obtainingawards from the free spins of the reels while avoiding one or more ofthe reels reaching one or more of the positions of the secondary eventzone (which may terminate the play of the unlimited free spins game).

In one embodiment wherein the outcome associated with a position of thesecondary event zone includes a play of an unlimited free spins game,the gaming system displays the secondary event zone below the pluralityof reels, wherein the free spins game continues so long as none of thereels reach the secondary event zone. In this embodiment, upon anoccurrence of a symbol display position quantity modification event,such as the generation of a down symbol on a reel, the gaming systemadds one or more symbol display positions below that reel (i.e., tobring that reel closer to the secondary event zone). In anotherembodiment, in addition to employing symbol display position quantitymodification events which grow the reels in a downward direction towardthe potential termination of the unlimited free spins game, the gamingsystem employs certain symbol display position quantity modificationevents, such as the generation of an up symbol on a reel, which resultsin the gaming system removing one or more symbol display positions froma reel (i.e., to bring that reel further away from the secondary eventzone and extend the play of the unlimited free spins game). In theseembodiments, upon any of the reels adding enough symbol displaypositions below such reels such that a reel reaches the secondary eventzone of the unlimited free spins game, the gaming system provides theaward of the position of the secondary event zone associated with thatreel (and possibly terminates the play of the unlimited free spins gameif that reached position is associated with a termination outcome).

In different embodiments, the outcome associated with a position of thesecondary event zone includes one or more plays of any suitable gamewherein such games include, but are not limited to: a play of anysuitable wheel game; a play of any suitable card game; a play of anysuitable offer and acceptance game; a play of any suitable award laddergame; a play of any suitable puzzle-type game; a play of any suitablepersistence game; a play of any suitable selection game; a play of anysuitable cascading symbols game; a play of any suitable ways to wingame; a play of any suitable scatter pay game; a play of any suitablecoin-pusher game; a play of any suitable elimination game; a play of anysuitable stacked wilds game; a play of any suitable trail game; a playof any suitable bingo game; a play of any suitable video scratch-offgame; a play of any suitable pick-until-complete game; a play of anysuitable shooting simulation game; a play of any suitable racing game; aplay of any suitable promotional game; a play of any suitable high-lowgame; a play of any suitable lottery game; a play of any suitable numberselection game; a play of any suitable dice game; a play of any suitableskill game; a play of any suitable auction game; a play of any suitablereverse-auction game; and/or a play of any suitable group game.

In certain embodiments, zero, one or more of the outcomes of thesecondary event zone are associated with an award, such as a monetaryaward or a non-monetary award. In certain embodiments, zero, one or moreof the outcomes of the secondary event zone are associated with a gamemodifying attribute, such as a modifier. In one such embodiment,different outcomes of the secondary event zone are associated withdifferent game modifying attributes. For example, one outcome of thesecondary event zone is associated with a game modifying attribute offive additional free spins and another game outcome of the secondaryevent zone is associated with a game modifying attribute of a two wildreels. In one such embodiment, different outcomes of the secondary eventzone are associated with the same game modifying attribute. In anothersuch embodiment, different outcomes of the secondary event zone areassociated with different quantities of game modifying attributes. Inone such embodiment, different outcomes of the secondary event zone areassociated with the same quantity of game modifying attributes.

In various embodiments, the gaming system activates one or more featuresin association with one or more outcomes of the secondary event zone. Indifferent embodiments, such features include, but are not limited to: afeature which modifies one or more game outcomes of one or more plays ofa game (e.g., the symbols evaluated for the play(s) of the game); afeature which modifies the paytable utilized for one or more plays ofthe game; a feature which modifies any award determined for one or moreplays of the game; a feature which superimposed one or more symbols overthe randomly generated symbols of the reels; a feature which replacesone or more symbols of the randomly generated symbols of the reels witha predetermined symbol pattern; a feature which replaces one or moresymbols of the randomly generated symbols of the reels with apredetermined pattern of wild symbols; a book-end wild symbols feature;a stacked wild symbols feature; an expanding wild symbols feature; anudging wild symbols feature; a retrigger symbol feature; ananti-terminator symbol feature; a locking reel feature, a locking symbolposition feature; a feature which provides an additional award amount toa player; a feature modifying an amount of credits of a credit balance;a feature modifying an amount of promotional credits; a featuremodifying a rate of earning player tracking points; a feature modifyinga triggering event of a play of a secondary or bonus game; a featuremodifying an activation of a secondary or bonus display (such as anaward generator); a feature modifying a quantity of activations of asecondary or bonus display (e.g., a feature modifying a quantity ofspins of an award generator); a feature modifying a quantity of sectionsof a secondary or bonus display (e.g., a feature modifying a quantity ofsections of an award generator); a feature modifying one or more awardsof a secondary or bonus display; a feature modifying an activation of acommunity award generator; a feature modifying a quantity of activationsof a community award generator; a feature modifying a quantity ofsections of a community award generator; a feature modifying one or moreawards of a community award generator; a feature modifying a generatedoutcome (or a designated generated outcome) in a secondary game; afeature modifying a placed wager amount; a feature modifying a placedside wager amount; a feature modifying a number of wagered on paylines;a feature modifying a wager placed on one or more paylines (or on one ormore designated paylines); a feature modifying a number of ways to winwagered on; a feature modifying a wager placed on one or more ways towin (or on one or more designated ways to win); a feature modifying anaverage expected payback percentage of a play of a game; a featuremodifying an average expected payout of a play of a game; a featuremodifying one or more awards available; a feature modifying a range ofawards available; a feature modifying a type of awards available; afeature modifying one or more progressive awards; a feature modifyingwhich progressive awards are available to be won; a feature modifying anactivation of a reel (or a designated reel); a feature modifying anactivation of a plurality of reels; a feature modifying a generatedoutcome (or a designated generated outcome) on a designated payline; afeature modifying a generated outcome (or a designated generatedoutcome) in a scatter configuration; a feature modifying a winning wayto win (or a designated winning way to win); a feature modifying adesignated symbol or symbol combination; a feature modifying ageneration of a designated symbol or symbol combination on a designatedpayline; a feature modifying a generation of a designated symbol orsymbol combination in a scatter configuration; a feature modifying aquantity of picks in a selection game; a feature modifying a quantity ofoffers in an offer and acceptance game; a feature modifying a quantityof moves in a trail game; a feature modifying an amount of free spinsprovided; a feature modifying a game terminating or ending condition; afeature modifying how one or more aspects of one or more games (e.g.,colors, speeds, sound) are displayed to a player; and/or a featuremodifying any game play feature associated with any play of any gamedisclosed herein.

In different embodiments, one or more awards provided in associationwith the secondary event zone (and/or one or more winning symbolcombinations) include one or more of: a quantity of monetary credits, aquantity of non-monetary credits, a quantity of promotional credits, aquantity of player tracking points, a progressive award, a modifier,such as a multiplier, a quantity of free plays of one or more games, aquantity of plays of one or more secondary or bonus games, a multiplierof a quantity of free plays of a game, one or more lottery based awards,such as lottery or drawing tickets, a wager match for one or more playsof one or more games, an increase in the average expected paybackpercentage for one or more plays of one or more games, one or morecomps, such as a free dinner, a free night's stay at a hotel, a highvalue product such as a free car, or a low value product, one or morebonus credits usable for online play, a lump sum of player trackingpoints or credits, a multiplier for player tracking points or credits,an increase in a membership or player tracking level, one or morecoupons or promotions usable within and/or outside of the gamingestablishment (e.g., a 20% off coupon for use at a convenience store),virtual goods associated with the gaming system, virtual goods notassociated with the gaming system, an access code usable to unlockcontent on an internet.

In certain embodiments, as indicated in FIGS. 2A to 2E, each reel isassociated with one position of the secondary event zone. In anotherembodiment, one or more reels are each reel associated with a pluralityof positions of the secondary event zone. In another embodiment, one ormore positions of the secondary event zone are each associated with aplurality of reels. In another embodiment, different wager levels whichmay be placed are associated with different quantities of positions ofthe secondary event zone and/or different outcomes associated with suchpositions of the secondary event zone. In another embodiment, differentplayer tracking level statuses are associated with different quantitiesof positions of the secondary event zone and/or different outcomesassociated with such positions of the secondary event zone.

In certain embodiments, as indicated in FIGS. 2A to 2E, each reel isassociate with the same quantity of initially displayed symbol displaypositions and the same quantity of initially non-displayed symboldisplay positions. In another embodiment, two or more reels are eachassociated with different quantities of initially displayed symboldisplay positions. In another embodiment, two or more reels are eachassociated with different quantities of initially non-displayed symboldisplay positions. In another embodiment, two or more reels are eachassociated with different quantities of initially displayed symboldisplay positions and different quantities of initially non-displayedsymbol display positions. In another embodiment, different wager levelswhich may be placed are associated with different quantities ofinitially displayed symbol display positions per reel and differentquantities of initially non-displayed symbol display positions per reel.In another embodiment, different player tracking level statuses areassociated with different quantities of initially displayed symboldisplay positions per reel and different quantities of initiallynon-displayed symbol display position per reel.

In certain embodiments, the gaming system determines whether to modify aquantity of symbol display positions associated with one or more reelsbased on at least one interaction with a player. In one such embodiment,the gaming system enables the player to make one or more skill-inputs todetermine whether to modify a quantity of symbol display positionsassociated with one or more reels. In these embodiments, the one or moreskill input includes one or more quantifiable inputs which tend tomeasure one or more aspects of the player's skill. In differentembodiments, skill includes one or more of: (i) physical skill, such as,but not limited to: timing, aim, physical strength or any combinationthereof which is quantifiable by zero, one or more inputs made by theplayer in association with the reel activation sequence; (ii) mentalskill (i.e., knowledge, reasoning, and/or strategy) which isquantifiable by one or more inputs made by the player (or the lack ofany inputs made by the player) in association with the reel activationsequence; and (iii) any other type of skill which is quantifiable by oneor more inputs made by the player (or the lack of any inputs made by theplayer). In various embodiments, the player utilizes one or more skillinput devices to make one or more quantifiable skill inputs. Examples ofskill input devices include, but are not limited to: mobile devices,such as a personal gaming device (as described below), joysticks,buttons, a mouse or a plurality of mice, one or more trackballs, one ormore pointing devices, one or more bodily motion trackers such as motionsensing devices for human-computer interaction, touchpads, touchscreens,one or more controllers with: (1) one or more motion sensing devices,(2) one or more proximity sensing devices, (3) one or more force sensingdevices (transducers), (4) one or more accelerometers, or any othersuitable skill input devices.

In one embodiment, the gaming system provides a group gaming aspect tothe games disclosed herein. In one such embodiment, the modifications ofa quantity of symbol display positions associated with one or more reelsare employed in a community game wherein a plurality of playerscooperate or play together to win zero, one or more awards. In anothersuch embodiment, the modifications of a quantity of symbol displaypositions associated with one or more reels are employed in acompetitive event wherein a plurality of players compete or play againsteach other to win zero, one or more awards.

In one embodiment, the gaming system causes at least one display deviceof the gaming system to display the game including the dynamically sizedreels and the secondary event zone. In another embodiment, the gamingsystem additionally or alternatively causes one or more community oroverhead display devices to display part or all of the game includingthe dynamically sized reels and the secondary event zone to one or moreother players or bystanders either at a gaming establishment or viewingover a network, such as the internet. In another embodiment, the gamingsystem additionally or alternatively causes one or more internet sitesto each display the game including the dynamically sized reels and thesecondary event zone such that a player is enabled to log on from apersonal web browser.

In different embodiments, a reel and secondary event zone display event,a game triggering event, a symbol display position quantity modificationevent, a reel reset event and/or a secondary event zone triggering eventoccurs based on an outcome associated with one or more plays of anyprimary games. In one embodiment, such determinations are symbol drivenbased on the generation of one or more designated symbols or symbolcombinations. In various embodiments, a generation of a designatedsymbol (or sub-symbol) or a designated set of symbols (or sub-symbols)over one or more plays of a primary game causes such conditions to besatisfied and/or one or more of such events to occur.

In different embodiments, the gaming system does not provide anyapparent reasons to the players for an occurrence of a reel andsecondary event zone display event, a game triggering event, a symboldisplay position quantity modification event, a reel reset event and/ora secondary event zone triggering event. In these embodiments, suchdeterminations are not triggered by an event in a primary game or basedspecifically on any of the plays of any primary games. That is, theseevents occur without any explanation or alternatively with simpleexplanations.

In one such embodiment, a reel and secondary event zone display event, agame triggering event, a symbol display position quantity modificationevent, a reel reset event and/or a secondary event zone triggering eventoccurs based on an amount of coin-in. In this embodiment, the gamingsystem determines if an amount of coin-in reaches or exceeds adesignated amount of coin-in (i.e., a threshold coin-in amount). Uponthe amount of coin-in wagered reaching or exceeding the thresholdcoin-in amount, the gaming system causes one or more of such events orconditions to occur. In another such embodiment, a reel and secondaryevent zone display event, a game triggering event, a symbol displayposition quantity modification event, a reel reset event and/or asecondary event zone triggering event occurs based on an amount ofvirtual currency-in. In this embodiment, the gaming system determines ifan amount of virtual currency-in wagered reaches or exceeds a designatedamount of virtual currency-in (i.e., a threshold virtual currency-inamount). Upon the amount of virtual currency-in wagered reaching orexceeding the threshold virtual currency-in amount, the gaming systemcauses one or more of such events or conditions to occur. In differentembodiments, the threshold coin-in amount and/or the threshold virtualcurrency-in amount is predetermined, randomly determined, determinedbased on a player's status (such as determined through a player trackingsystem), determined based on a generated symbol or symbol combination,determined based on a random determination by the central controller,determined based on a random determination at the gaming device,determined based on one or more side wagers placed, determined based onthe player's primary game wager, determined based on time (such as thetime of day) or determined based on any other suitable method orcriteria.

In one such embodiment, a reel and secondary event zone display event, agame triggering event, a symbol display position quantity modificationevent, a reel reset event and/or a secondary event zone triggering eventoccurs based on an amount of coin-out. In this embodiment, the gamingsystem determines if an amount of coin-out reaches or exceeds adesignated amount of coin-out (i.e., a threshold coin-out amount). Uponthe amount of coin-out reaching or exceeding the threshold coin-outamount, the gaming system causes one or more of such events orconditions to occur. In another such embodiment, a reel and secondaryevent zone display event, a game triggering event, a symbol displayposition quantity modification event, a reel reset event and/or asecondary event zone triggering event occurs based on an amount ofvirtual currency-out. In this embodiment, the gaming system determinesif an amount of virtual currency-out reaches or exceeds a designatedamount of virtual currency-out (i.e., a threshold virtual currency-outamount). Upon the amount of virtual currency-out reaching or exceedingthe threshold virtual currency-out amount, the gaming system causes oneor more of such events or conditions to occur. In different embodiments,the threshold coin-out amount and/or the threshold virtual currency-outamount is predetermined, randomly determined, determined based on aplayer's status (such as determined through a player tracking system),determined based on a generated symbol or symbol combination, determinedbased on a random determination by the central controller, determinedbased on a random determination at the gaming device, determined basedon one or more side wagers placed, determined based on the player'sprimary game wager, determined based on time (such as the time of day)or determined based on any other suitable method or criteria.

In different embodiments, a reel and secondary event zone display event,a game triggering event, a symbol display position quantity modificationevent, a reel reset event and/or a secondary event zone triggering eventoccurs based on a predefined variable reaching a defined parameterthreshold. For example, when the 500,000th player has played anelectronic gaming machine (“EGM”) (ascertained from a player trackingsystem), one or more of such events or conditions occur. In differentembodiments, the predefined parameter thresholds include a length oftime, a length of time after a certain dollar amount is hit, a wagerlevel threshold for a specific device (which EGM is the first tocontribute $250,000), a number of EGMs active, or any other parameterthat defines a suitable threshold.

In different embodiments, a reel and secondary event zone display event,a game triggering event, a symbol display position quantity modificationevent, a reel reset event and/or a secondary event zone triggering eventoccurs based on a quantity of games played. In this embodiment, aquantity of games played is set for when one or more of such events orconditions will occur. In one embodiment, such a set quantity of gamesplayed is based on historic data.

In different embodiments, a reel and secondary event zone display event,a game triggering event, a symbol display position quantity modificationevent, a reel reset event and/or a secondary event zone triggering eventoccurs based on time. In this embodiment, a time is set for when one ormore of such events or conditions will occur. In one embodiment, such aset time is based on historic data.

In different embodiments, a reel and secondary event zone display event,a game triggering event, a symbol display position quantity modificationevent, a reel reset event and/or a secondary event zone triggering eventoccurs based upon gaming system operator defined player eligibilityparameters stored on a player tracking system (such as via a playertracking card or other suitable manner). In this embodiment, theparameters for eligibility are defined by the gaming system operatorbased on any suitable criterion. In one embodiment, the gaming systemrecognizes the player's identification (via the player tracking system)when the player inserts or otherwise associates their player trackingcard in the EGM and/or logs into the player tracking system using amobile device, such as a personal gaming device. The gaming systemdetermines the player tracking level of the player and if the currentplayer tracking level defined by the gaming system operator is eligiblefor one or more of such events or conditions. In one embodiment, thegaming system operator defines minimum bet levels required for suchevents or conditions to occur based on the player's card level.

In different embodiments, a reel and secondary event zone display event,a game triggering event, a symbol display position quantity modificationevent, a reel reset event and/or a secondary event zone triggering eventoccurs based on a system determination, including one or more randomselections by the central controller. For example, as described above,the gaming system tracks all active EGMs and the wagers they placed,wherein based on the EGM's state as well as one or more wager poolsassociated with the EGM, the gaming system determines whether to one ormore of such events or conditions will occur. In one such embodiment,the player who consistently places a higher wager is more likely to beassociated with an occurrence of one or more of such events orconditions than a player who consistently places a minimum wager. Itshould be appreciated that the criteria for determining whether a playeris in active status or inactive status for determining if one or more ofsuch events occur may the same as, substantially the same as, ordifferent than the criteria for determining whether a player is inactive status or inactive status for another one of such events tooccur.

In different embodiments, a reel and secondary event zone display event,a game triggering event, a symbol display position quantity modificationevent, a reel reset event and/or a secondary event zone triggering eventoccurs based on a determination of if any numbers allotted to an EGMmatch a randomly selected number. In this embodiment, upon or prior toeach play of each EGM, an EGM selects a random number from a range ofnumbers and during each primary game, the EGM allocates the first Nnumbers in the range, where N is the number of credits bet by the playerin that primary game. At the end of the primary game, the randomlyselected number is compared with the numbers allocated to the player andif a match occurs, one or more of such events or conditions occur.

It should be appreciated that any suitable manner of causing a reel andsecondary event zone display event, a game triggering event, a symboldisplay position quantity modification event, a reel reset event and/ora secondary event zone triggering event to occur may be implemented inaccordance with the gaming system and method disclosed herein. It shouldbe further appreciated that one or more of the above-described triggerspertaining to a reel and secondary event zone display event, a gametriggering event, a symbol display position quantity modification event,a reel reset event and/or a secondary event zone triggering eventoccurring may be combined in one or more different embodiments.

Alternative Embodiments

It should be appreciated that in different embodiments, one or more of:

-   -   i. when a reel and secondary event zone display event, a game        triggering event, a symbol display position quantity        modification event, a reel reset event and/or a secondary event        zone triggering event occurs;    -   ii. a quantity of default initially displayed symbol display        positions associated with one or more reels;    -   iii. a quantity of default initially non-displayed symbol        display positions associated with one or more reels;    -   iv. which outcomes are associated with which positions of the        secondary event zone;    -   v. a quantity of reels to modify a quantity of associated symbol        display positions of upon an occurrence of a symbol display        position quantity modification event;    -   vi. which reels to modify a quantity of associated symbol        display positions of upon an occurrence of a symbol display        position quantity modification event;    -   vii. a quantity of symbol display positions to add in        association with one or more reels upon an occurrence of a        symbol display position quantity modification event;    -   viii. a quantity of symbol display positions to remove in        association with one or more reels upon an occurrence of a        symbol display position quantity modification event;    -   ix. a quantity of reels to reset upon an occurrence of a reel        reset event;    -   x. which reels to reset upon an occurrence of a reel reset        event; and/or    -   xi. any determination disclosed herein;        is/are predetermined, randomly determined, randomly determined        based on one or more weighted percentages, determined based on a        generated symbol or symbol combination, determined independent        of a generated symbol or symbol combination, determined based on        a random determination by the central controller, determined        independent of a random determination by the central controller,        determined based on a random determination at the gaming system,        determined independent of a random determination at the gaming        system, determined based on at least one play of at least one        game, determined independent of at least one play of at least        one game, determined based on a player's selection, determined        independent of a player's selection, determined based on one or        more side wagers placed, determined independent of one or more        side wagers placed, determined based on the player's primary        game wager, determined independent of the player's primary game        wager, determined based on time (such as the time of day),        determined independent of time (such as the time of day),        determined based on an amount of coin-in accumulated in one or        more pools, determined independent of an amount of coin-in        accumulated in one or more pools, determined based on a status        of the player (i.e., a player tracking status), determined        independent of a status of the player (i.e., a player tracking        status), determined based on one or more other determinations        disclosed herein, determined independent of any other        determination disclosed herein or determined based on any other        suitable method or criteria.

Gaming Systems

The above-described embodiments of the present disclosure may beimplemented in accordance with or in conjunction with one or more of avariety of different types of gaming systems, such as, but not limitedto, those described below.

The present disclosure contemplates a variety of different gamingsystems each having one or more of a plurality of different features,attributes, or characteristics. A “gaming system” as used herein refersto various configurations of: (a) one or more central servers, centralcontrollers, or remote hosts; (b) one or more electronic gaming machinessuch as those located on a casino floor; and/or (c) one or more personalgaming devices, such as desktop computers, laptop computers, tabletcomputers or computing devices, personal digital assistants, mobilephones, and other mobile computing devices.

Thus, in various embodiments, the gaming system of the presentdisclosure includes: (a) one or more electronic gaming machines incombination with one or more central servers, central controllers, orremote hosts; (b) one or more personal gaming devices in combinationwith one or more central servers, central controllers, or remote hosts;(c) one or more personal gaming devices in combination with one or moreelectronic gaming machines; (d) one or more personal gaming devices, oneor more electronic gaming machines, and one or more central servers,central controllers, or remote hosts in combination with one another;(e) a single electronic gaming machine; (f) a plurality of electronicgaming machines in combination with one another; (g) a single personalgaming device; (h) a plurality of personal gaming devices in combinationwith one another; (i) a single central server, central controller, orremote host; and/or (j) a plurality of central servers, centralcontrollers, or remote hosts in combination with one another.

For brevity and clarity and unless specifically stated otherwise, “EGM”as used herein represents one EGM or a plurality of EGMs, “personalgaming device” as used herein represents one personal gaming device or aplurality of personal gaming devices, and “central server, centralcontroller, or remote host” as used herein represents one centralserver, central controller, or remote host or a plurality of centralservers, central controllers, or remote hosts.

As noted above, in various embodiments, the gaming system includes anEGM (or personal gaming device) in combination with a central server,central controller, or remote host. In such embodiments, the EGM (orpersonal gaming device) is configured to communicate with the centralserver, central controller, or remote host through a data network orremote communication link. In certain such embodiments, the EGM (orpersonal gaming device) is configured to communicate with another EGM(or personal gaming device) through the same data network or remotecommunication link or through a different data network or remotecommunication link. For example, the gaming system includes a pluralityof EGMs that are each configured to communicate with a central server,central controller, or remote host through a data network.

In certain embodiments in which the gaming system includes an EGM (orpersonal gaming device) in combination with a central server, centralcontroller, or remote host, the central server, central controller, orremote host is any suitable computing device (such as a server) thatincludes at least one processor and at least one memory device or datastorage device. As further described herein, the EGM (or personal gamingdevice) includes at least one EGM (or personal gaming device) processorconfigured to transmit and receive data or signals representing events,messages, commands, or any other suitable information between the EGM(or personal gaming device) and the central server, central controller,or remote host. The at least one processor of that EGM (or personalgaming device) is configured to execute the events, messages, orcommands represented by such data or signals in conjunction with theoperation of the EGM (or personal gaming device). Moreover, the at leastone processor of the central server, central controller, or remote hostis configured to transmit and receive data or signals representingevents, messages, commands, or any other suitable information betweenthe central server, central controller, or remote host and the EGM (orpersonal gaming device). The at least one processor of the centralserver, central controller, or remote host is configured to execute theevents, messages, or commands represented by such data or signals inconjunction with the operation of the central server, centralcontroller, or remote host. One, more than one, or each of the functionsof the central server, central controller, or remote host may beperformed by the at least one processor of the EGM (or personal gamingdevice). Further, one, more than one, or each of the functions of the atleast one processor of the EGM (or personal gaming device) may beperformed by the at least one processor of the central server, centralcontroller, or remote host.

In certain such embodiments, computerized instructions for controllingany games (such as any primary or base games and/or any secondary orbonus games) displayed by the EGM (or personal gaming device) areexecuted by the central server, central controller, or remote host. Insuch “thin client” embodiments, the central server, central controller,or remote host remotely controls any games (or other suitableinterfaces) displayed by the EGM (or personal gaming device), and theEGM (or personal gaming device) is utilized to display such games (orsuitable interfaces) and to receive one or more inputs or commands. Inother such embodiments, computerized instructions for controlling anygames displayed by the EGM (or personal gaming device) are communicatedfrom the central server, central controller, or remote host to the EGM(or personal gaming device) and are stored in at least one memory deviceof the EGM (or personal gaming device). In such “thick client”embodiments, the at least one processor of the EGM (or personal gamingdevice) executes the computerized instructions to control any games (orother suitable interfaces) displayed by the EGM (or personal gamingdevice).

In various embodiments in which the gaming system includes a pluralityof EGMs (or personal gaming devices), one or more of the EGMs (orpersonal gaming devices) are thin client EGMs (or personal gamingdevices) and one or more of the EGMs (or personal gaming devices) arethick client EGMs (or personal gaming devices). In other embodiments inwhich the gaming system includes one or more EGMs (or personal gamingdevices), certain functions of one or more of the EGMs (or personalgaming devices) are implemented in a thin client environment, andcertain other functions of one or more of the EGMs (or personal gamingdevices) are implemented in a thick client environment. In one suchembodiment in which the gaming system includes an EGM (or personalgaming device) and a central server, central controller, or remote host,computerized instructions for controlling any primary or base gamesdisplayed by the EGM (or personal gaming device) are communicated fromthe central server, central controller, or remote host to the EGM (orpersonal gaming device) in a thick client configuration, andcomputerized instructions for controlling any secondary or bonus gamesor other functions displayed by the EGM (or personal gaming device) areexecuted by the central server, central controller, or remote host in athin client configuration.

In certain embodiments in which the gaming system includes: (a) an EGM(or personal gaming device) configured to communicate with a centralserver, central controller, or remote host through a data network;and/or (b) a plurality of EGMs (or personal gaming devices) configuredto communicate with one another through a data network, the data networkis a local area network (LAN) in which the EGMs (or personal gamingdevices) are located substantially proximate to one another and/or thecentral server, central controller, or remote host. In one example, theEGMs (or personal gaming devices) and the central server, centralcontroller, or remote host are located in a gaming establishment or aportion of a gaming establishment.

In other embodiments in which the gaming system includes: (a) an EGM (orpersonal gaming device) configured to communicate with a central server,central controller, or remote host through a data network; and/or (b) aplurality of EGMs (or personal gaming devices) configured to communicatewith one another through a data network, the data network is a wide areanetwork (WAN) in which one or more of the EGMs (or personal gamingdevices) are not necessarily located substantially proximate to anotherone of the EGMs (or personal gaming devices) and/or the central server,central controller, or remote host. For example, one or more of the EGMs(or personal gaming devices) are located: (a) in an area of a gamingestablishment different from an area of the gaming establishment inwhich the central server, central controller, or remote host is located;or (b) in a gaming establishment different from the gaming establishmentin which the central server, central controller, or remote host islocated. In another example, the central server, central controller, orremote host is not located within a gaming establishment in which theEGMs (or personal gaming devices) are located. In certain embodiments inwhich the data network is a WAN, the gaming system includes a centralserver, central controller, or remote host and an EGM (or personalgaming device) each located in a different gaming establishment in asame geographic area, such as a same city or a same state. Gamingsystems in which the data network is a WAN are substantially identicalto gaming systems in which the data network is a LAN, though thequantity of EGMs (or personal gaming devices) in such gaming systems mayvary relative to one another.

In further embodiments in which the gaming system includes: (a) an EGM(or personal gaming device) configured to communicate with a centralserver, central controller, or remote host through a data network;and/or (b) a plurality of EGMs (or personal gaming devices) configuredto communicate with one another through a data network, the data networkis an internet (such as the Internet) or an intranet. In certain suchembodiments, an Internet browser of the EGM (or personal gaming device)is usable to access an Internet game page from any location where anInternet connection is available. In one such embodiment, after the EGM(or personal gaming device) accesses the Internet game page, the centralserver, central controller, or remote host identifies a player beforeenabling that player to place any wagers on any plays of any wageringgames. In one example, the central server, central controller, or remotehost identifies the player by requiring a player account of the playerto be logged into via an input of a unique player name and passwordcombination assigned to the player. The central server, centralcontroller, or remote host may, however, identify the player in anyother suitable manner, such as by validating a player trackingidentification number associated with the player; by reading a playertracking card or other smart card inserted into a card reader (asdescribed below); by validating a unique player identification numberassociated with the player by the central server, central controller, orremote host; or by identifying the EGM (or personal gaming device), suchas by identifying the MAC address or the IP address of the Internetfacilitator. In various embodiments, once the central server, centralcontroller, or remote host identifies the player, the central server,central controller, or remote host enables placement of one or morewagers on one or more plays of one or more primary or base games and/orone or more secondary or bonus games, and displays those plays via theInternet browser of the EGM (or personal gaming device). Examples ofimplementations of Internet-based gaming are further described in U.S.Pat. No. 8,764,566, entitled “Internet Remote Game Server,” and U.S.Pat. No. 8,147,334, entitled “Universal Game Server”.

The central server, central controller, or remote host and the EGM (orpersonal gaming device) are configured to connect to the data network orremote communications link in any suitable manner. In variousembodiments, such a connection is accomplished via: a conventional phoneline or other data transmission line, a digital subscriber line (DSL), aT-1 line, a coaxial cable, a fiber optic cable, a wireless or wiredrouting device, a mobile communications network connection (such as acellular network or mobile Internet network), or any other suitablemedium. The expansion in the quantity of computing devices and thequantity and speed of Internet connections in recent years increasesopportunities for players to use a variety of EGMs (or personal gamingdevices) to play games from an ever-increasing quantity of remote sites.Additionally, the enhanced bandwidth of digital wireless communicationsmay render such technology suitable for some or all communications,particularly if such communications are encrypted. Higher datatransmission speeds may be useful for enhancing the sophistication andresponse of the display and interaction with players.

EGM Components

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an example EGM 1000 and FIGS. 4A and 4Binclude two different example EGMs 2000 a and 2000 b. The EGMs 1000,2000 a, and 2000 b are merely example EGMs, and different EGMs may beimplemented using different combinations of the components shown in theEGMs 1000, 2000 a, and 2000 b. Although the below refers to EGMs, invarious embodiments personal gaming devices (such as personal gamingdevice 2000 c of FIG. 4C) may include some or all of the belowcomponents.

In these embodiments, the EGM 1000 includes a master gaming controller1012 configured to communicate with and to operate with a plurality ofperipheral devices 1022.

The master gaming controller 1012 includes at least one processor 1010.The at least one processor 1010 is any suitable processing device or setof processing devices, such as a microprocessor, a microcontroller-basedplatform, a suitable integrated circuit, or one or moreapplication-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), configured to executesoftware enabling various configuration and reconfiguration tasks, suchas: (1) communicating with a remote source (such as a server that storesauthentication information or game information) via a communicationinterface 1006 of the master gaming controller 1012; (2) convertingsignals read by an interface to a format corresponding to that used bysoftware or memory of the EGM; (3) accessing memory to configure orreconfigure game parameters in the memory according to indicia read fromthe EGM; (4) communicating with interfaces and the peripheral devices1022 (such as input/output devices); and/or (5) controlling theperipheral devices 1022. In certain embodiments, one or more componentsof the master gaming controller 1012 (such as the at least one processor1010) reside within a housing of the EGM (described below), while inother embodiments at least one component of the master gaming controller1012 resides outside of the housing of the EGM.

The master gaming controller 1012 also includes at least one memorydevice 1016, which includes: (1) volatile memory (e.g., RAM 1009, whichcan include non-volatile RAM, magnetic RAM, ferroelectric RAM, and anyother suitable forms); (2) non-volatile memory 1019 (e.g., disk memory,FLASH memory, EPROMs, EEPROMs, memristor-based non-volatile solid-statememory, etc.); (3) unalterable memory (e.g., EPROMs 1008); (4) read-onlymemory; and/or (5) a secondary memory storage device 1015, such as anon-volatile memory device, configured to store gaming software relatedinformation (the gaming software related information and the memory maybe used to store various audio files and games not currently being usedand invoked in a configuration or reconfiguration). Any other suitablemagnetic, optical, and/or semiconductor memory may operate inconjunction with the EGM disclosed herein. In certain embodiments, theat least one memory device 1016 resides within the housing of the EGM(described below), while in other embodiments at least one component ofthe at least one memory device 1016 resides outside of the housing ofthe EGM. In these embodiments, any combination of one or more computerreadable media may be utilized. The computer readable media may be acomputer readable signal medium or a computer readable storage medium. Acomputer readable storage medium may be, for example, but not limitedto, an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, or semiconductorsystem, apparatus, or device, or any suitable combination of theforegoing. More specific examples (a non-exhaustive list) of thecomputer readable storage medium would include the following: a portablecomputer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), aread-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROMor Flash memory), an appropriate optical fiber with a repeater, aportable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storagedevice, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of theforegoing. In the context of this document, a computer readable storagemedium may be any tangible medium that can contain, or store a programfor use by or in connection with an instruction execution system,apparatus, or device.

A computer readable signal medium may include a propagated data signalwith computer readable program code embodied therein, for example, inbaseband or as part of a carrier wave. Such a propagated signal may takeany of a variety of forms, including, but not limited to,electro-magnetic, optical, or any suitable combination thereof. Acomputer readable signal medium may be any computer readable medium thatis not a computer readable storage medium and that can communicate,propagate, or transport a program for use by or in connection with aninstruction execution system, apparatus, or device. Program codeembodied on a computer readable signal medium may be transmitted usingany appropriate medium, including but not limited to wireless, wireline,optical fiber cable, RF, etc., or any suitable combination of theforegoing.

The at least one memory device 1016 is configured to store, for example:(1) configuration software 1014, such as all the parameters and settingsfor a game playable on the EGM; (2) associations 1018 betweenconfiguration indicia read from an EGM with one or more parameters andsettings; (3) communication protocols configured to enable the at leastone processor 1010 to communicate with the peripheral devices 1022;and/or (4) communication transport protocols (such as TCP/IP, USB,Firewire, IEEE1394, Bluetooth, IEEE 802.11x (IEEE 802.11 standards),hiperlan/2, HomeRF, etc.) configured to enable the EGM to communicatewith local and non-local devices using such protocols. In oneimplementation, the master gaming controller 1012 communicates withother devices using a serial communication protocol. A few non-limitingexamples of serial communication protocols that other devices, such asperipherals (e.g., a bill validator or a ticket printer), may use tocommunicate with the master game controller 1012 include USB, RS-232,and Netplex (a proprietary protocol developed by IGT).

As will be appreciated by one skilled in the art, aspects of the presentdisclosure may be illustrated and described herein in any of a number ofpatentable classes or context including any new and useful process,machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and usefulimprovement thereof. Accordingly, aspects of the present disclosure maybe implemented entirely hardware, entirely software (including firmware,resident software, micro-code, etc.) or combining software and hardwareimplementation that may all generally be referred to herein as a“circuit,” “module,” “component,” or “system.” Furthermore, aspects ofthe present disclosure may take the form of a computer program productembodied in one or more computer readable media having computer readableprogram code embodied thereon.

Computer program code for carrying out operations for aspects of thepresent disclosure may be written in any combination of one or moreprogramming languages, including an object oriented programming languagesuch as Java, Scala, Smalltalk, Eiffel, JADE, Emerald, C++, C#, VB.NET,Python or the like, conventional procedural programming languages, suchas the “C” programming language, Visual Basic, Fortran 2003, Perl, COBOL2002, PHP, ABAP, dynamic programming languages such as Python, Ruby andGroovy, or other programming languages. The program code may executeentirely on the player's computer, partly on the player's computer, as astand-alone software package, partly on the player's computer and partlyon a remote computer or entirely on the remote computer or server. Inthe latter scenario, the remote computer may be connected to theplayer's computer through any type of network, including a local areanetwork (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or the connection may bemade to an external computer (for example, through the Internet using anInternet Service Provider) or in a cloud computing environment oroffered as a service such as a Software as a Service (SaaS).

Aspects of the present disclosure are described herein with reference toflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatuses(systems) and computer program products according to embodiments of thedisclosure. It will be understood that each block of the flowchartillustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in theflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented bycomputer program instructions. These computer program instructions maybe provided to a processor of a general purpose computer, specialpurpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus toproduce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via theprocessor of the computer or other programmable instruction executionapparatus, create a mechanism for implementing the functions/actsspecified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.

These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computerreadable medium that when executed can direct a computer, otherprogrammable data processing apparatus, or other devices to function ina particular manner, such that the instructions when stored in thecomputer readable medium produce an article of manufacture includinginstructions which when executed, cause a computer to implement thefunction/act specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block orblocks. The computer program instructions may also be loaded onto acomputer, other programmable instruction execution apparatus, or otherdevices to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on thecomputer, other programmable apparatuses or other devices to produce acomputer implemented process such that the instructions which execute onthe computer or other programmable apparatus provide processes forimplementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks.

In certain embodiments, the at least one memory device 1016 isconfigured to store program code and instructions executable by the atleast one processor of the EGM to control the EGM. The at least onememory device 1016 of the EGM also stores other operating data, such asimage data, event data, input data, random number generators (RNGs) orpseudo-RNGs, paytable data or information, and/or applicable game rulesthat relate to the play of one or more games on the EGM. In variousembodiments, part or all of the program code and/or the operating datadescribed above is stored in at least one detachable or removable memorydevice including, but not limited to, a cartridge, a disk, a CD ROM, aDVD, a USB memory device, or any other suitable non-transitory computerreadable medium. In certain such embodiments, an operator (such as agaming establishment operator) and/or a player uses such a removablememory device in an EGM to implement at least part of the presentdisclosure. In other embodiments, part or all of the program code and/orthe operating data is downloaded to the at least one memory device ofthe EGM through any suitable data network described above (such as anInternet or intranet).

The at least one memory device 1016 also stores a plurality of devicedrivers 1042. Examples of different types of device drivers includedevice drivers for EGM components and device drivers for the peripheralcomponents 1022. Typically, the device drivers 1042 utilize variouscommunication protocols that enable communication with a particularphysical device. The device driver abstracts the hardware implementationof that device. For example, a device driver may be written for eachtype of card reader that could potentially be connected to the EGM.Non-limiting examples of communication protocols used to implement thedevice drivers include Netplex, USB, Serial, Ethernet 175, Firewire, I/Odebouncer, direct memory map, serial, PCI, parallel, RF, Bluetooth™,near-field communications (e.g., using near-field magnetics), 802.11(WiFi), etc. In one embodiment, when one type of a particular device isexchanged for another type of the particular device, the at least oneprocessor of the EGM loads the new device driver from the at least onememory device to enable communication with the new device. For instance,one type of card reader in the EGM can be replaced with a seconddifferent type of card reader when device drivers for both card readersare stored in the at least one memory device.

In certain embodiments, the software units stored in the at least onememory device 1016 can be upgraded as needed. For instance, when the atleast one memory device 1016 is a hard drive, new games, new gameoptions, new parameters, new settings for existing parameters, newsettings for new parameters, new device drivers, and new communicationprotocols can be uploaded to the at least one memory device 1016 fromthe master game controller 1012 or from some other external device. Asanother example, when the at least one memory device 1016 includes aCD/DVD drive including a CD/DVD configured to store game options,parameters, and settings, the software stored in the at least one memorydevice 1016 can be upgraded by replacing a first CD/DVD with a secondCD/DVD. In yet another example, when the at least one memory device 1016uses flash memory 1019 or EPROM 1008 units configured to store games,game options, parameters, and settings, the software stored in the flashand/or EPROM memory units can be upgraded by replacing one or morememory units with new memory units that include the upgraded software.In another embodiment, one or more of the memory devices, such as thehard drive, may be employed in a game software download process from aremote software server.

In some embodiments, the at least one memory device 1016 also storesauthentication and/or validation components 1044 configured toauthenticate/validate specified EGM components and/or information, suchas hardware components, software components, firmware components,peripheral device components, player input device components,information received from one or more player input devices, informationstored in the at least one memory device 1016, etc. Examples of variousauthentication and/or validation components are described in U.S. Pat.No. 6,620,047, entitled “Electronic Gaming Apparatus HavingAuthentication Data Sets”.

In certain embodiments, the peripheral devices 1022 include severaldevice interfaces, such as: (1) at least one output device 1020including at least one display device 1035; (2) at least one inputdevice 1030 (which may include contact and/or non-contact interfaces);(3) at least one transponder 1054; (4) at least one wirelesscommunication component 1056; (5) at least one wired/wireless powerdistribution component 1058; (6) at least one sensor 1060; (7) at leastone data preservation component 1062; (8) at least one motion/gestureanalysis and interpretation component 1064; (9) at least one motiondetection component 1066; (10) at least one portable power source 1068;(11) at least one geolocation module 1076; (12) at least one playeridentification module 1077; (13) at least one player/device trackingmodule 1078; and (14) at least one information filtering module 1079.

The at least one output device 1020 includes at least one display device1035 configured to display any game(s) displayed by the EGM and anysuitable information associated with such game(s). In certainembodiments, the display devices are connected to or mounted on ahousing of the EGM (described below). In various embodiments, thedisplay devices serve as digital glass configured to advertise certaingames or other aspects of the gaming establishment in which the EGM islocated. In various embodiments, the EGM includes one or more of thefollowing display devices: (a) a central display device; (b) a playertracking display configured to display various information regarding aplayer's player tracking status (as described below); (c) a secondary orupper display device in addition to the central display device and theplayer tracking display; (d) a credit display configured to display acurrent quantity of credits, amount of cash, account balance, or theequivalent; and (e) a bet display configured to display an amountwagered for one or more plays of one or more games. The example EGM 2000a illustrated in FIG. 4A includes a central display device 2116, aplayer tracking display 2140, a credit display 2120, and a bet display2122. The example EGM 2000 b illustrated in FIG. 4B includes a centraldisplay device 2116, an upper display device 2118, a player trackingdisplay 2140, a credit display 2120, and a bet display 2122.

In various embodiments, the display devices include, without limitation:a monitor, a television display, a plasma display, a liquid crystaldisplay (LCD), a display based on light emitting diodes (LEDs), adisplay based on a plurality of organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs), adisplay based on polymer light-emitting diodes (PLEDs), a display basedon a plurality of surface-conduction electron-emitters (SEDs), a displayincluding a projected and/or reflected image, or any other suitableelectronic device or display mechanism. In certain embodiments, asdescribed above, the display device includes a touch-screen with anassociated touch-screen controller. The display devices may be of anysuitable sizes, shapes, and configurations.

The display devices of the EGM are configured to display one or moregame and/or non-game images, symbols, and indicia. In certainembodiments, the display devices of the EGM are configured to displayany suitable visual representation or exhibition of the movement ofobjects; dynamic lighting; video images; images of people, characters,places, things, and faces of cards; and the like. In certainembodiments, the display devices of the EGM are configured to displayone or more video reels, one or more video wheels, and/or one or morevideo dice. In other embodiments, certain of the displayed images,symbols, and indicia are in mechanical form. That is, in theseembodiments, the display device includes any electromechanical device,such as one or more rotatable wheels, one or more reels, and/or one ormore dice, configured to display at least one or a plurality of game orother suitable images, symbols, or indicia.

In various embodiments, the at least one output device 1020 includes apayout device. In these embodiments, after the EGM receives an actuationof a cashout device (described below), the EGM causes the payout deviceto provide a payment to the player. In one embodiment, the payout deviceis one or more of: (a) a ticket printer and dispenser configured toprint and dispense a ticket or credit slip associated with a monetaryvalue, wherein the ticket or credit slip may be redeemed for itsmonetary value via a cashier, a kiosk, or other suitable redemptionsystem; (b) a bill dispenser configured to dispense paper currency; (c)a coin dispenser configured to dispense coins or tokens (such as into acoin payout tray); and (d) any suitable combination thereof. The exampleEGMs 2000 a and 2000 b illustrated in FIGS. 4A and 4B each include aticket printer and dispenser 2136. Examples of ticket-in ticket-out(TITO) technology are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,429,361, entitled“Gaming Machine Information, Communication and Display System”; U.S.Pat. No. 5,470,079, entitled “Gaming Machine Accounting and MonitoringSystem”; U.S. Pat. No. 5,265,874, entitled “Cashless Gaming Apparatusand Method”; U.S. Pat. No. 6,729,957, entitled “Gaming Method and HostComputer with Ticket-In/Ticket-Out Capability”; U.S. Pat. No. 6,729,958,entitled “Gaming System with Ticket-In/Ticket-Out Capability”; U.S. Pat.No. 6,736,725, entitled “Gaming Method and Host Computer withTicket-In/Ticket-Out Capability”; U.S. Pat. No. 7,275,991, entitled“Slot Machine with Ticket-In/Ticket-Out Capability”; and U.S. Pat. No.6,048,269, entitled “Coinless Slot Machine System and Method”.

In certain embodiments, rather than dispensing bills, coins, or aphysical ticket having a monetary value to the player following receiptof an actuation of the cashout device, the payout device is configuredto cause a payment to be provided to the player in the form of anelectronic funds transfer, such as via a direct deposit into a bankaccount, a casino account, or a prepaid account of the player; via atransfer of funds onto an electronically recordable identification cardor smart card of the player; or via sending a virtual ticket having amonetary value to an electronic device of the player. Examples ofproviding payment using virtual tickets are described in U.S. Pat. No.8,613,659, entitled “Virtual Ticket-In and Ticket-Out on a GamingMachine”.

While any credit balances, any wagers, any values, and any awards aredescribed herein as amounts of monetary credits or currency, one or moreof such credit balances, such wagers, such values, and such awards maybe for non-monetary credits, promotional credits, of player trackingpoints or credits.

In certain embodiments, the at least one output device 1020 is a soundgenerating device controlled by one or more sound cards. In one suchembodiment, the sound generating device includes one or more speakers orother sound generating hardware and/or software configured to generatesounds, such as by playing music for any games or by playing music forother modes of the EGM, such as an attract mode. The example EGMs 2000 aand 2000 b illustrated in FIGS. 4A and 4B each include a plurality ofspeakers 2150. In another such embodiment, the EGM provides dynamicsounds coupled with attractive multimedia images displayed on one ormore of the display devices to provide an audio-visual representation orto otherwise display full-motion video with sound to attract players tothe EGM. In certain embodiments, the EGM displays a sequence of audioand/or visual attraction messages during idle periods to attractpotential players to the EGM. The videos may be customized to provideany appropriate information.

The at least one input device 1030 may include any suitable device thatenables an input signal to be produced and received by the at least oneprocessor 1010 of the EGM.

In one embodiment, the at least one input device 1030 includes a paymentdevice configured to communicate with the at least one processor of theEGM to fund the EGM. In certain embodiments, the payment device includesone or more of: (a) a bill acceptor into which paper money is insertedto fund the EGM; (b) a ticket acceptor into which a ticket or a voucheris inserted to fund the EGM; (c) a coin slot into which coins or tokensare inserted to fund the EGM; (d) a reader or a validator for creditcards, debit cards, or credit slips into which a credit card, debitcard, or credit slip is inserted to fund the EGM; (e) a playeridentification card reader into which a player identification card isinserted to fund the EGM; or (f) any suitable combination thereof. Theexample EGMs 2000 a and 2000 b illustrated in FIGS. 4A and 4B eachinclude a combined bill and ticket acceptor 2128 and a coin slot 2126.

In one embodiment, the at least one input device 1030 includes a paymentdevice configured to enable the EGM to be funded via an electronic fundstransfer, such as a transfer of funds from a bank account. In anotherembodiment, the EGM includes a payment device configured to communicatewith a mobile device of a player, such as a mobile phone, a radiofrequency identification tag, or any other suitable wired or wirelessdevice, to retrieve relevant information associated with that player tofund the EGM. Examples of funding an EGM via communication between theEGM and a mobile device (such as a mobile phone) of a player aredescribed in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2013/0344942,entitled “Avatar as Security Measure for Mobile Device Use withElectronic Gaming Machine”. When the EGM is funded, the at least oneprocessor determines the amount of funds entered and displays thecorresponding amount on a credit display or any other suitable displayas described below.

In certain embodiments, the at least one input device 1030 includes atleast one wagering or betting device. In various embodiments, the one ormore wagering or betting devices are each: (1) a mechanical buttonsupported by the housing of the EGM (such as a hard key or aprogrammable soft key), or (2) an icon displayed on a display device ofthe EGM (described below) that is actuatable via a touch screen of theEGM (described below) or via use of a suitable input device of the EGM(such as a mouse or a joystick). One such wagering or betting device isas a maximum wager or bet device that, when actuated, causes the EGM toplace a maximum wager on a play of a game. Another such wagering orbetting device is a repeat bet device that, when actuated, causes theEGM to place a wager that is equal to the previously-placed wager on aplay of a game. A further such wagering or betting device is a bet onedevice that, when actuated, causes the EGM to increase the wager by onecredit. Generally, upon actuation of one of the wagering or bettingdevices, the quantity of credits displayed in a credit meter (describedbelow) decreases by the amount of credits wagered, while the quantity ofcredits displayed in a bet display (described below) increases by theamount of credits wagered.

In various embodiments, the at least one input device 1030 includes atleast one game play activation device. In various embodiments, the oneor more game play initiation devices are each: (1) a mechanical buttonsupported by the housing of the EGM (such as a hard key or aprogrammable soft key), or (2) an icon displayed on a display device ofthe EGM (described below) that is actuatable via a touch screen of theEGM (described below) or via use of a suitable input device of the EGM(such as a mouse or a joystick). After a player appropriately funds theEGM and places a wager, the EGM activates the game play activationdevice to enable the player to actuate the game play activation deviceto initiate a play of a game on the EGM (or another suitable sequence ofevents associated with the EGM). After the EGM receives an actuation ofthe game play activation device, the EGM initiates the play of the game.The example EGMs 2000 a and 2000 b illustrated in FIGS. 4A and 4B eachinclude a game play activation device in the form of a game playinitiation button 2132. In other embodiments, the EGM begins game playautomatically upon appropriate funding rather than upon utilization ofthe game play activation device.

In other embodiments, the at least one input device 1030 includes acashout device. In various embodiments, the cashout device is: (1) amechanical button supported by the housing of the EGM (such as a hardkey or a programmable soft key), or (2) an icon displayed on a displaydevice of the EGM (described below) that is actuatable via a touchscreen of the EGM (described below) or via use of a suitable inputdevice of the EGM (such as a mouse or a joystick). When the EGM receivesan actuation of the cashout device from a player and the player has apositive (i.e., greater-than-zero) credit balance, the EGM initiates apayout associated with the player's credit balance. The example EGMs2000 a and 2000 b illustrated in FIGS. 4A and 4B each include a cashoutdevice in the form of a cashout button 2134.

In various embodiments, the at least one input device 1030 includes aplurality of buttons that are programmable by the EGM operator to, whenactuated, cause the EGM to perform particular functions. For instance,such buttons may be hard keys, programmable soft keys, or icons icondisplayed on a display device of the EGM (described below) that areactuatable via a touch screen of the EGM (described below) or via use ofa suitable input device of the EGM (such as a mouse or a joystick). Theexample EGMs 2000 a and 2000 b illustrated in FIGS. 4A and 4B eachinclude a plurality of such buttons 2130.

In certain embodiments, the at least one input device 1030 includes atouch-screen coupled to a touch-screen controller or othertouch-sensitive display overlay to enable interaction with any imagesdisplayed on a display device (as described below). One such inputdevice is a conventional touch-screen button panel. The touch-screen andthe touch-screen controller are connected to a video controller. Inthese embodiments, signals are input to the EGM by touching the touchscreen at the appropriate locations.

In embodiments including a player tracking system, as further describedbelow, the at least one input device 1030 includes a card reader incommunication with the at least one processor of the EGM. The exampleEGMs 2000 a and 2000 b illustrated in FIGS. 4A and 4B each include acard reader 2138. The card reader is configured to read a playeridentification card inserted into the card reader.

The at least one wireless communication component 1056 includes one ormore communication interfaces having different architectures andutilizing a variety of protocols, such as (but not limited to) 802.11(WiFi); 802.15 (including Bluetooth™); 802.16 (WiMax); 802.22; cellularstandards such as CDMA, CDMA2000, and WCDMA; Radio Frequency (e.g.,RFID); infrared; and Near Field Magnetic communication protocols. The atleast one wireless communication component 1056 transmits electrical,electromagnetic, or optical signals that carry digital data streams oranalog signals representing various types of information.

The at least one wired/wireless power distribution component 1058includes components or devices that are configured to provide power toother devices. For example, in one embodiment, the at least one powerdistribution component 1058 includes a magnetic induction system that isconfigured to provide wireless power to one or more player input devicesnear the EGM. In one embodiment, a player input device docking region isprovided, and includes a power distribution component that is configuredto recharge a player input device without requiring metal-to-metalcontact. In one embodiment, the at least one power distributioncomponent 1058 is configured to distribute power to one or more internalcomponents of the EGM, such as one or more rechargeable power sources(e.g., rechargeable batteries) located at the EGM.

In certain embodiments, the at least one sensor 1060 includes at leastone of: optical sensors, pressure sensors, RF sensors, infrared sensors,image sensors, thermal sensors, and biometric sensors. The at least onesensor 1060 may be used for a variety of functions, such as: detectingmovements and/or gestures of various objects within a predeterminedproximity to the EGM; detecting the presence and/or identity of variouspersons (e.g., players, casino employees, etc.), devices (e.g., playerinput devices), and/or systems within a predetermined proximity to theEGM.

The at least one data preservation component 1062 is configured todetect or sense one or more events and/or conditions that, for example,may result in damage to the EGM and/or that may result in loss ofinformation associated with the EGM. Additionally, the data preservationsystem 1062 may be operable to initiate one or more appropriateaction(s) in response to the detection of such events/conditions.

The at least one motion/gesture analysis and interpretation component1064 is configured to analyze and/or interpret information relating todetected player movements and/or gestures to determine appropriateplayer input information relating to the detected player movementsand/or gestures. For example, in one embodiment, the at least onemotion/gesture analysis and interpretation component 1064 is configuredto perform one or more of the following functions: analyze the detectedgross motion or gestures of a player; interpret the player's motion orgestures (e.g., in the context of a casino game being played) toidentify instructions or input from the player; utilize the interpretedinstructions/input to advance the game state; etc. In other embodiments,at least a portion of these additional functions may be implemented at aremote system or device.

The at least one portable power source 1068 enables the EGM to operatein a mobile environment. For example, in one embodiment, the EGM 300includes one or more rechargeable batteries.

The at least one geolocation module 1076 is configured to acquiregeolocation information from one or more remote sources and use theacquired geolocation information to determine information relating to arelative and/or absolute position of the EGM. For example, in oneimplementation, the at least one geolocation module 1076 is configuredto receive GPS signal information for use in determining the position orlocation of the EGM. In another implementation, the at least onegeolocation module 1076 is configured to receive multiple wirelesssignals from multiple remote devices (e.g., EGMs, servers, wirelessaccess points, etc.) and use the signal information to computeposition/location information relating to the position or location ofthe EGM.

The at least one player identification module 1077 is configured todetermine the identity of the current player or current owner of theEGM. For example, in one embodiment, the current player is required toperform a login process at the EGM in order to access one or morefeatures. Alternatively, the EGM is configured to automaticallydetermine the identity of the current player based on one or moreexternal signals, such as an RFID tag or badge worn by the currentplayer and that provides a wireless signal to the EGM that is used todetermine the identity of the current player. In at least oneembodiment, various security features are incorporated into the EGM toprevent unauthorized players from accessing confidential or sensitiveinformation.

The at least one information filtering module 1079 is configured toperform filtering (e.g., based on specified criteria) of selectedinformation to be displayed at one or more displays 1035 of the EGM.

In various embodiments, the EGM includes a plurality of communicationports configured to enable the at least one processor of the EGM tocommunicate with and to operate with external peripherals, such as:accelerometers, arcade sticks, bar code readers, bill validators,biometric input devices, bonus devices, button panels, card readers,coin dispensers, coin hoppers, display screens or other displays orvideo sources, expansion buses, information panels, keypads, lights,mass storage devices, microphones, motion sensors, motors, printers,reels, SCSI ports, solenoids, speakers, thumbsticks, ticket readers,touch screens, trackballs, touchpads, wheels, and wireless communicationdevices. U.S. Pat. No. 7,290,072 describes a variety of EGMs includingone or more communication ports that enable the EGMs to communicate andoperate with one or more external peripherals.

As generally described above, in certain embodiments, such as theexample EGMs 2000 a and 2000 b illustrated in FIGS. 4A and 4B, the EGMhas a support structure, housing, or cabinet that provides support for aplurality of the input devices and the output devices of the EGM.Further, the EGM is configured such that a player may operate it whilestanding or sitting. In various embodiments, the EGM is positioned on abase or stand, or is configured as a pub-style tabletop game (not shown)that a player may operate typically while sitting. As illustrated by thedifferent example EGMs 2000 a and 2000 b shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, EGMsmay have varying housing and display configurations.

In certain embodiments, the EGM is a device that has obtained approvalfrom a regulatory gaming commission, and in other embodiments, the EGMis a device that has not obtained approval from a regulatory gamingcommission.

The EGMs described above are merely three examples of different types ofEGMs. Certain of these example EGMs may include one or more elementsthat may not be included in all gaming systems, and these example EGMsmay not include one or more elements that are included in other gamingsystems. For example, certain EGMs include a coin acceptor while othersdo not.

Operation of Primary or Base Games and/or Secondary or Bonus Games

In various embodiments, an EGM may be implemented in one of a variety ofdifferent configurations. In various embodiments, the EGM may beimplemented as one of: (a) a dedicated EGM in which computerized gameprograms executable by the EGM for controlling any primary or base games(referred to herein as “primary games”) and/or any secondary or bonusgames or other functions (referred to herein as “secondary games”)displayed by the EGM are provided with the EGM before delivery to agaming establishment or before being provided to a player; and (b) achangeable EGM in which computerized game programs executable by the EGMfor controlling any primary games and/or secondary games displayed bythe EGM are downloadable or otherwise transferred to the EGM through adata network or remote communication link; from a USB drive, flashmemory card, or other suitable memory device; or in any other suitablemanner after the EGM is physically located in a gaming establishment orafter the EGM is provided to a player.

As generally explained above, in various embodiments in which the gamingsystem includes a central server, central controller, or remote host anda changeable EGM, the at least one memory device of the central server,central controller, or remote host stores different game programs andinstructions executable by the at least one processor of the changeableEGM to control one or more primary games and/or secondary gamesdisplayed by the changeable EGM. More specifically, each such executablegame program represents a different game or a different type of gamethat the at least one changeable EGM is configured to operate. In oneexample, certain of the game programs are executable by the changeableEGM to operate games having the same or substantially the same game playbut different paytables. In different embodiments, each executable gameprogram is associated with a primary game, a secondary game, or both. Incertain embodiments, an executable game program is executable by the atleast one processor of the at least one changeable EGM as a secondarygame to be played simultaneously with a play of a primary game (whichmay be downloaded to or otherwise stored on the at least one changeableEGM), or vice versa.

In operation of such embodiments, the central server, centralcontroller, or remote host is configured to communicate one or more ofthe stored executable game programs to the at least one processor of thechangeable EGM. In different embodiments, a stored executable gameprogram is communicated or delivered to the at least one processor ofthe changeable EGM by: (a) embedding the executable game program in adevice or a component (such as a microchip to be inserted into thechangeable EGM); (b) writing the executable game program onto a disc orother media; or (c) uploading or streaming the executable game programover a data network (such as a dedicated data network). After theexecutable game program is communicated from the central server, centralcontroller, or remote host to the changeable EGM, the at least oneprocessor of the changeable EGM executes the executable game program toenable the primary game and/or the secondary game associated with thatexecutable game program to be played using the display device(s) and/orthe input device(s) of the changeable EGM. That is, when an executablegame program is communicated to the at least one processor of thechangeable EGM, the at least one processor of the changeable EGM changesthe game or the type of game that may be played using the changeableEGM.

In certain embodiments, the gaming system randomly determines any gameoutcome(s) (such as a win outcome) and/or award(s) (such as a quantityof credits to award for the win outcome) for a play of a primary gameand/or a play of a secondary game based on probability data. In certainsuch embodiments, this random determination is provided throughutilization of an RNG, such as a true RNG or a pseudo RNG, or any othersuitable randomization process. In one such embodiment, each gameoutcome or award is associated with a probability, and the gaming systemgenerates the game outcome(s) and/or the award(s) to be provided basedon the associated probabilities. In these embodiments, since the gamingsystem generates game outcomes and/or awards randomly or based on one ormore probability calculations, there is no certainty that the gamingsystem will ever provide any specific game outcome and/or award.

In certain embodiments, the gaming system maintains one or morepredetermined pools or sets of predetermined game outcomes and/orawards. In certain such embodiments, upon generation or receipt of agame outcome and/or award request, the gaming system independentlyselects one of the predetermined game outcomes and/or awards from theone or more pools or sets. The gaming system flags or marks the selectedgame outcome and/or award as used. Once a game outcome or an award isflagged as used, it is prevented from further selection from itsrespective pool or set; that is, the gaming system does not select thatgame outcome or award upon another game outcome and/or award request.The gaming system provides the selected game outcome and/or award.Examples of this type of award evaluation are described in U.S. Pat. No.7,470,183, entitled “Finite Pool Gaming Method and Apparatus”; U.S. Pat.No. 7,563,163, entitled “Gaming Device Including Outcome Pools forProviding Game Outcomes”; U.S. Pat. No. 7,833,092, entitled “Method andSystem for Compensating for Player Choice in a Game of Chance”; U.S.Pat. No. 8,070,579, entitled “Bingo System with Downloadable CommonPatterns”; and U.S. Pat. No. 8,398,472, entitled “Central DeterminationPoker Game”.

In certain embodiments, the gaming system determines a predeterminedgame outcome and/or award based on the results of a bingo, keno, orlottery game. In certain such embodiments, the gaming system utilizesone or more bingo, keno, or lottery games to determine the predeterminedgame outcome and/or award provided for a primary game and/or a secondarygame. The gaming system is provided or associated with a bingo card.Each bingo card consists of a matrix or array of elements, wherein eachelement is designated with separate indicia. After a bingo card isprovided, the gaming system randomly selects or draws a plurality of theelements. As each element is selected, a determination is made as towhether the selected element is present on the bingo card. If theselected element is present on the bingo card, that selected element onthe provided bingo card is marked or flagged. This process of selectingelements and marking any selected elements on the provided bingo cardscontinues until one or more predetermined patterns are marked on one ormore of the provided bingo cards. After one or more predeterminedpatterns are marked on one or more of the provided bingo cards, gameoutcome and/or award is determined based, at least in part, on theselected elements on the provided bingo cards. Examples of this type ofaward determination are described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,753,774, entitled“Using Multiple Bingo Cards to Represent Multiple Slot Paylines andOther Class III Game Options”; U.S. Pat. No. 7,731,581, entitled“Multi-Player Bingo Game with Multiple Alternative Outcome Displays”;U.S. Pat. No. 7,955,170, entitled “Providing Non-Bingo Outcomes for aBingo Game”; U.S. Pat. No. 8,070,579, entitled “Bingo System withDownloadable Common Patterns”; and U.S. Pat. No. 8,500,538, entitled“Bingo Gaming System and Method for Providing Multiple Outcomes fromSingle Bingo Pattern”.

In certain embodiments in which the gaming system includes a centralserver, central controller, or remote host and an EGM, the EGM isconfigured to communicate with the central server, central controller,or remote host for monitoring purposes only. In such embodiments, theEGM determines the game outcome(s) and/or award(s) to be provided in anyof the manners described above, and the central server, centralcontroller, or remote host monitors the activities and events occurringon the EGM. In one such embodiment, the gaming system includes areal-time or online accounting and gaming information system configuredto communicate with the central server, central controller, or remotehost. In this embodiment, the accounting and gaming information systemincludes: (a) a player database configured to store player profiles, (b)a player tracking module configured to track players (as describedbelow), and (c) a credit system configured to provide automatedtransactions. Examples of such accounting systems are described in U.S.Pat. No. 6,913,534, entitled “Gaming Machine Having a Lottery Game andCapability for Integration with Gaming Device Accounting System andPlayer Tracking System,” and U.S. Pat. No. 8,597,116, entitled “VirtualPlayer Tracking and Related Services”.

As noted above, in various embodiments, the gaming system includes oneor more executable game programs executable by at least one processor ofthe gaming system to provide one or more primary games and one or moresecondary games. The primary game(s) and the secondary game(s) maycomprise any suitable games and/or wagering games, such as, but notlimited to: electro-mechanical or video slot or spinning reel typegames; video card games such as video draw poker, multi-hand video drawpoker, other video poker games, video blackjack games, and videobaccarat games; video keno games; video bingo games; and video selectiongames.

In certain embodiments in which the primary game is a slot or spinningreel type game, the gaming system includes one or more reels in eitheran electromechanical form with mechanical rotating reels or in a videoform with simulated reels and movement thereof. Each reel displays aplurality of indicia or symbols, such as bells, hearts, fruits, numbers,letters, bars, or other images that typically correspond to a themeassociated with the gaming system. In certain such embodiments, thegaming system includes one or more paylines associated with the reels.The example EGM 2000 b shown in FIG. 4B includes a payline 1152 and aplurality of reels 1154. In certain embodiments, one or more of thereels are independent reels or unisymbol reels. In such embodiments,each independent reel generates and displays one symbol.

In various embodiments, one or more of the paylines is horizontal,vertical, circular, diagonal, angled, or any suitable combinationthereof. In other embodiments, each of one or more of the paylines isassociated with a plurality of adjacent symbol display areas on arequisite number of adjacent reels. In one such embodiment, one or morepaylines are formed between at least two symbol display areas that areadjacent to each other by either sharing a common side or sharing acommon corner (i.e., such paylines are connected paylines). The gamingsystem enables a wager to be placed on one or more of such paylines toactivate such paylines. In other embodiments in which one or morepaylines are formed between at least two adjacent symbol display areas,the gaming system enables a wager to be placed on a plurality of symboldisplay areas, which activates those symbol display areas.

In various embodiments, the gaming system provides one or more awardsafter a spin of the reels when specified types and/or configurations ofthe indicia or symbols on the reels occur on an active payline orotherwise occur in a winning pattern, occur on the requisite number ofadjacent reels, and/or occur in a scatter pay arrangement.

In certain embodiments, the gaming system employs a ways to win awarddetermination. In these embodiments, any outcome to be provided isdetermined based on a number of associated symbols that are generated inactive symbol display areas on the requisite number of adjacent reels(i.e., not on paylines passing through any displayed winning symbolcombinations). If a winning symbol combination is generated on thereels, one award for that occurrence of the generated winning symbolcombination is provided. Examples of ways to win award determinationsare described in U.S. Pat. No. 8,012,011, entitled “Gaming Device andMethod Having Independent Reels and Multiple Ways of Winning”; U.S. Pat.No. 8,241,104, entitled “Gaming Device and Method Having DesignatedRules for Determining Ways To Win”; and U.S. Pat. No. 8,430,739,entitled “Gaming System and Method Having Wager Dependent DifferentSymbol Evaluations”.

In various embodiments, the gaming system includes a progressive award.Typically, a progressive award includes an initial amount and anadditional amount funded through a portion of each wager placed toinitiate a play of a primary game. When one or more triggering eventsoccurs, the gaming system provides at least a portion of the progressiveaward. After the gaming system provides the progressive award, an amountof the progressive award is reset to the initial amount and a portion ofeach subsequent wager is allocated to the next progressive award.Examples of progressive gaming systems are described in U.S. Pat. No.7,585,223, entitled “Server Based Gaming System Having MultipleProgressive Awards”; U.S. Pat. No. 7,651,392, entitled “Gaming DeviceSystem Having Partial Progressive Payout”; U.S. Pat. No. 7,666,093,entitled “Gaming Method and Device Involving Progressive Wagers”; U.S.Pat. No. 7,780,523, entitled “Server Based Gaming System Having MultipleProgressive Awards”; and U.S. Pat. No. 8,337,298, entitled “GamingDevice Having Multiple Different Types of Progressive Awards”.

As generally noted above, in addition to providing winning credits orother awards for one or more plays of the primary game(s), in variousembodiments the gaming system provides credits or other awards for oneor more plays of one or more secondary games. The secondary gametypically enables an award to be obtained addition to any award obtainedthrough play of the primary game(s). The secondary game(s) typicallyproduces a higher level of player excitement than the primary game(s)because the secondary game(s) provides a greater expectation of winningthan the primary game(s) and is accompanied with more attractive orunusual features than the primary game(s). The secondary game(s) may beany type of suitable game, either similar to or completely differentfrom the primary game.

In various embodiments, the gaming system automatically provides orinitiates the secondary game upon the occurrence of a triggering eventor the satisfaction of a qualifying condition. In other embodiments, thegaming system initiates the secondary game upon the occurrence of thetriggering event or the satisfaction of the qualifying condition andupon receipt of an initiation input. In certain embodiments, thetriggering event or qualifying condition is a selected outcome in theprimary game(s) or a particular arrangement of one or more indicia on adisplay device for a play of the primary game(s), such as a “BONUS”symbol appearing on three adjacent reels along a payline following aspin of the reels for a play of the primary game. In other embodiments,the triggering event or qualifying condition occurs based on a certainamount of game play (such as number of games, number of credits, amountof time) being exceeded, or based on a specified number of points beingearned during game play. Any suitable triggering event or qualifyingcondition or any suitable combination of a plurality of differenttriggering events or qualifying conditions may be employed.

In other embodiments, at least one processor of the gaming systemrandomly determines when to provide one or more plays of one or moresecondary games. In one such embodiment, no apparent reason is providedfor providing the secondary game. In this embodiment, qualifying for asecondary game is not triggered by the occurrence of an event in anyprimary game or based specifically on any of the plays of any primarygame. That is, qualification is provided without any explanation or,alternatively, with a simple explanation. In another such embodiment,the gaming system determines qualification for a secondary game at leastpartially based on a game triggered or symbol triggered event, such asat least partially based on play of a primary game.

In various embodiments, after qualification for a secondary game hasbeen determined, the secondary game participation may be enhancedthrough continued play on the primary game. Thus, in certainembodiments, for each secondary game qualifying event, such as asecondary game symbol, that is obtained, a given number of secondarygame wagering points or credits is accumulated in a “secondary gamemeter” configured to accrue the secondary game wagering credits orentries toward eventual participation in the secondary game. In one suchembodiment, the occurrence of multiple such secondary game qualifyingevents in the primary game results in an arithmetic or exponentialincrease in the number of secondary game wagering credits awarded. Inanother such embodiment, any extra secondary game wagering credits maybe redeemed during the secondary game to extend play of the secondarygame.

In certain embodiments, no separate entry fee or buy-in for thesecondary game is required. That is, entry into the secondary gamecannot be purchased; rather, in these embodiments entry must be won orearned through play of the primary game, thereby encouraging play of theprimary game. In other embodiments, qualification for the secondary gameis accomplished through a simple “buy-in.” For example, qualificationthrough other specified activities is unsuccessful, payment of a fee orplacement of an additional wager “buys-in” to the secondary game. Incertain embodiments, a separate side wager must be placed on thesecondary game or a wager of a designated amount must be placed on theprimary game to enable qualification for the secondary game. In theseembodiments, the secondary game triggering event must occur and the sidewager (or designated primary game wager amount) must have been placedfor the secondary game to trigger.

In various embodiments in which the gaming system includes a pluralityof EGMs, the EGMs are configured to communicate with one another toprovide a group gaming environment. In certain such embodiments, theEGMs enable players of those EGMs to work in conjunction with oneanother, such as by enabling the players to play together as a team orgroup, to win one or more awards. In other such embodiments, the EGMsenable players of those EGMs to compete against one another for one ormore awards. In one such embodiment, the EGMs enable the players ofthose EGMs to participate in one or more gaming tournaments for one ormore awards. Examples of group gaming systems are described in U.S. Pat.No. 8,070,583, entitled “Server Based Gaming System and Method forSelectively Providing One or More Different Tournaments”; U.S. Pat. No.8,500,548, entitled “Gaming System and Method for Providing TeamProgressive Awards”; and U.S. Pat. No. 8,562,423, entitled “Method andApparatus for Rewarding Multiple Game Players for a Single Win”.

In various embodiments, the gaming system includes one or more playertracking systems. Such player tracking systems enable operators of thegaming system (such as casinos or other gaming establishments) torecognize the value of customer loyalty by identifying frequentcustomers and rewarding them for their patronage. Such a player trackingsystem is configured to track a player's gaming activity. In one suchembodiment, the player tracking system does so through the use of playertracking cards. In this embodiment, a player is issued a playeridentification card that has an encoded player identification numberthat uniquely identifies the player. When the player's playing trackingcard is inserted into a card reader of the gaming system to begin agaming session, the card reader reads the player identification numberoff the player tracking card to identify the player. The gaming systemtimely tracks any suitable information or data relating to theidentified player's gaming session. The gaming system also timely trackswhen the player tracking card is removed to conclude play for thatgaming session. In another embodiment, rather than requiring insertionof a player tracking card into the card reader, the gaming systemutilizes one or more portable devices, such as a mobile phone, a radiofrequency identification tag, or any other suitable wireless device, totrack when a gaming session begins and ends. In another embodiment, thegaming system utilizes any suitable biometric technology or tickettechnology to track when a gaming session begins and ends.

In such embodiments, during one or more gaming sessions, the gamingsystem tracks any suitable information or data, such as any amountswagered, average wager amounts, and/or the time at which these wagersare placed. In different embodiments, for one or more players, theplayer tracking system includes the player's account number, theplayer's card number, the player's first name, the player's surname, theplayer's preferred name, the player's player tracking ranking, anypromotion status associated with the player's player tracking card, theplayer's address, the player's birthday, the player's anniversary, theplayer's recent gaming sessions, or any other suitable data. In variousembodiments, such tracked information and/or any suitable featureassociated with the player tracking system is displayed on a playertracking display. In various embodiments, such tracked informationand/or any suitable feature associated with the player tracking systemis displayed via one or more service windows that are displayed on thecentral display device and/or the upper display device. Examples ofplayer tracking systems are described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,722,985,entitled “Universal Player Tracking System”; U.S. Pat. No. 6,908,387,entitled “Player Tracking Communication Mechanisms in a Gaming Machine”;U.S. Pat. No. 7,311,605, entitled “Player Tracking Assembly for CompletePatron Tracking for Both Gaming and Non-Gaming Casino Activity”; U.S.Pat. No. 7,611,411, entitled “Player Tracking Instruments HavingMultiple Communication Modes”; U.S. Pat. No. 7,617,151, entitled“Alternative Player Tracking Techniques”; and U.S. Pat. No. 8,057,298,entitled “Virtual Player Tracking and Related Services”.

Web-Based Gaming

In various embodiments, the gaming system includes one or more serversconfigured to communicate with a personal gaming device—such as asmartphone, a tablet computer, a desktop computer, or a laptopcomputer—to enable web-based game play using the personal gaming device.In various embodiments, the player must first access a gaming websitevia an Internet browser of the personal gaming device or execute anapplication (commonly called an “app”) installed on the personal gamingdevice before the player can use the personal gaming device toparticipate in web-based game play. In certain embodiments, the one ormore servers and the personal gaming device operate in a thin-clientenvironment. In these embodiments, the personal gaming device receivesinputs via one or more input devices (such as a touch screen and/orphysical buttons), the personal gaming device sends the received inputsto the one or more servers, the one or more servers make variousdeterminations based on the inputs and determine content to be displayed(such as a randomly determined game outcome and corresponding award),the one or more servers send the content to the personal gaming device,and the personal gaming device displays the content.

In certain such embodiments, the one or more servers must identify theplayer before enabling game play on the personal gaming device (or, insome embodiments, before enabling monetary wager-based game play on thepersonal gaming device). In these embodiments, the player must identifyherself to the one or more servers, such as by inputting the player'sunique playername and password combination, providing an input to abiometric sensor (e.g., a fingerprint sensor, a retinal sensor, a voicesensor, or a facial-recognition sensor), or providing any other suitableinformation.

Once identified, the one or more servers enable the player to establishan account balance from which the player can draw credits usable towager on plays of a game. In certain embodiments, the one or moreservers enable the player to initiate an electronic funds transfer totransfer funds from a bank account to the player's account balance. Inother embodiments, the one or more servers enable the player to make apayment using the player's credit card, debit card, or other suitabledevice to add money to the player's account balance. In otherembodiments, the one or more servers enable the player to add money tothe player's account balance via a peer-to-peer type application, suchas PayPal or Venmo. The one or more servers also enable the player tocash out the player's account balance (or part of it) in any suitablemanner, such as via an electronic funds transfer, by initiating creationof a paper check that is mailed to the player, or by initiating printingof a voucher at a kiosk in a gaming establishment.

In certain embodiments, the one or more servers include a payment serverthat handles establishing and cashing out players' account balances anda separate game server configured to determine the outcome and anyassociated award for a play of a game. In these embodiments, the gameserver is configured to communicate with the personal gaming device andthe payment device, and the personal gaming device and the paymentdevice are not configured to directly communicate with one another. Inthese embodiments, when the game server receives data representing arequest to start a play of a game at a desired wager, the game serversends data representing the desired wager to the payment server. Thepayment server determines whether the player's account balance can coverthe desired wager (i.e., includes a monetary balance at least equal tothe desired wager).

If the payment server determines that the player's account balancecannot cover the desired wager, the payment server notifies the gameserver, which then instructs the personal gaming device to display asuitable notification to the player that the player's account balance istoo low to place the desired wager. If the payment server determinesthat the player's account balance can cover the desired wager, thepayment server deducts the desired wager from the account balance andnotifies the game server. The game server then determines an outcome andany associated award for the play of the game. The game server notifiesthe payment server of any nonzero award, and the payment serverincreases the player's account balance by the nonzero award. The gameserver sends data representing the outcome and any award to the personalgaming device, which displays the outcome and any award.

In certain embodiments, the one or more servers enable web-based gameplay using a personal gaming device only if the personal gaming devicesatisfies one or more jurisdictional requirements. In one embodiment,the one or more servers enable web-based game play using the personalgaming device only if the personal gaming device is located within adesignated geographic area (such as within certain state or county linesor within the boundaries of a gaming establishment). In this embodiment,the geolocation module of the personal gaming device determines thelocation of the personal gaming device and sends the location to the oneor more servers, which determine whether the personal gaming device islocated within the designated geographic area. In various embodiments,the one or more servers enable non-monetary wager-based game play if thepersonal gaming device is located outside of the designated geographicarea.

In various embodiments, the gaming system includes an EGM configured tocommunicate with a personal gaming device—such as a smartphone, a tabletcomputer, a desktop computer, or a laptop computer—to enable tetheredmobile game play using the personal gaming device. Generally, in theseembodiments, the EGM establishes communication with the personal gamingdevice and enables the player to play games on the EGM remotely via thepersonal gaming device. In certain embodiments, the gaming systemincludes a geo-fence system that enables tethered game play within aparticular geographic area but not outside of that geographic area.Examples of tethering an EGM to a personal gaming device and geo-fencingare described in U.S. Patent Appl. Pub. No. 2013/0267324, entitled“Remote Gaming Method Allowing Temporary Inactivation WithoutTerminating Playing Session Due to Game Inactivity”.

Social Network Integration

In certain embodiments, the gaming system is configured to communicatewith a social network server that hosts or partially hosts a socialnetworking website via a data network (such as the Internet) tointegrate a player's gaming experience with the player's socialnetworking account. This enables the gaming system to send certaininformation to the social network server that the social network servercan use to create content (such as text, an image, and/or a video) andpost it to the player's wall, newsfeed, or similar area of the socialnetworking website accessible by the player's connections (and incertain cases the public) such that the player's connections can viewthat information. This also enables the gaming system to receive certaininformation from the social network server, such as the player's likesor dislikes or the player's list of connections. In certain embodiments,the gaming system enables the player to link the player's player accountto the player's social networking account(s). This enables the gamingsystem to, once it identifies the player and initiates a gaming session(such as via the player logging in to a website (or an application) onthe player's personal gaming device or via the player inserting theplayer's player tracking card into an EGM), link that gaming session tothe player's social networking account(s). In other embodiments, thegaming system enables the player to link the player's social networkingaccount(s) to individual gaming sessions when desired by providing therequired login information.

For instance, in one embodiment, if a player wins a particular award(e.g., a progressive award or a jackpot award) or an award that exceedsa certain threshold (e.g., an award exceeding $1,000), the gaming systemsends information about the award to the social network server to enablethe server to create associated content (such as a screenshot of theoutcome and associated award) and to post that content to the player'swall (or other suitable area) of the social networking website for theplayer's connections to see (and to entice them to play). In anotherembodiment, if a player joins a multiplayer game and there is anotherseat available, the gaming system sends that information to the socialnetwork sever to enable the server to create associated content (such astext indicating a vacancy for that particular game) and to post thatcontent to the player's wall (or other suitable area) of the socialnetworking website for the player's connections to see (and to enticethem to fill the vacancy). In another embodiment, if the playerconsents, the gaming system sends advertisement information or offerinformation to the social network server to enable the social networkserver to create associated content (such as text or an image reflectingan advertisement and/or an offer) and to post that content to theplayer's wall (or other suitable area) of the social networking websitefor the player's connections to see. In another embodiment, the gamingsystem enables the player to recommend a game to the player'sconnections by posting a recommendation to the player's wall (or othersuitable area) of the social networking website.

Differentiating Certain Gaming Systems from General Purpose ComputingDevices

Certain of the gaming systems described herein, such as EGMs located ina casino or another gaming establishment, include certain componentsand/or are configured to operate in certain manners that differentiatethese systems from general purpose computing devices, i.e., certainpersonal gaming devices such as desktop computers and laptop computers.

For instance, EGMs are highly regulated to ensure fairness and, in manycases, EGMs are configured to award monetary awards up to multiplemillions of dollars. To satisfy security and regulatory requirements ina gaming environment, hardware and/or software architectures areimplemented in EGMs that differ significantly from those of generalpurpose computing devices. For purposes of illustration, a descriptionof EGMs relative to general purpose computing devices and some examplesof these additional (or different) hardware and/or softwarearchitectures found in EGMs are described below.

At first glance, one might think that adapting general purpose computingdevice technologies to the gaming industry and EGMs would be a simpleproposition because both general purpose computing devices and EGMsemploy processors that control a variety of devices. However, due to atleast: (1) the regulatory requirements placed on EGMs, (2) the harshenvironment in which EGMs operate, (3) security requirements, and (4)fault tolerance requirements, adapting general purpose computing devicetechnologies to EGMs can be quite difficult. Further, techniques andmethods for solving a problem in the general purpose computing deviceindustry, such as device compatibility and connectivity issues, mightnot be adequate in the gaming industry. For instance, a fault or aweakness tolerated in a general purpose computing device, such assecurity holes in software or frequent crashes, is not tolerated in anEGM because in an EGM these faults can lead to a direct loss of fundsfrom the EGM, such as stolen cash or loss of revenue when the EGM is notoperating properly or when the random outcome determination ismanipulated.

Certain differences between general purpose computing devices and EGMsare described below. A first difference between EGMs and general purposecomputing devices is that EGMs are state-based systems. A state-basedsystem stores and maintains its current state in a non-volatile memorysuch that, in the event of a power failure or other malfunction, thestate-based system can return to that state when the power is restoredor the malfunction is remedied. For instance, for a state-based EGM, ifthe EGM displays an award for a game of chance but the power to the EGMfails before the EGM provides the award to the player, the EGM storesthe pre-power failure state in a non-volatile memory, returns to thatstate upon restoration of power, and provides the award to the player.This requirement affects the software and hardware design on EGMs.General purpose computing devices are not state-based machines, and amajority of data is usually lost when a malfunction occurs on a generalpurpose computing device.

A second difference between EGMs and general purpose computing devicesis that, for regulatory purposes, the software on the EGM utilized tooperate the EGM has been designed to be static and monolithic to preventcheating by the operator of the EGM. For instance, one solution that hasbeen employed in the gaming industry to prevent cheating and to satisfyregulatory requirements has been to manufacture an EGM that can use aproprietary processor running instructions to provide the game of chancefrom an EPROM or other form of non-volatile memory. The codinginstructions on the EPROM are static (non-changeable) and must beapproved by a gaming regulators in a particular jurisdiction andinstalled in the presence of a person representing the gamingjurisdiction. Any changes to any part of the software required togenerate the game of chance, such as adding a new device driver used tooperate a device during generation of the game of chance, can requireburning a new EPROM approved by the gaming jurisdiction and reinstallingthe new EPROM on the EGM in the presence of a gaming regulator.Regardless of whether the EPROM solution is used, to gain approval inmost gaming jurisdictions, an EGM must demonstrate sufficient safeguardsthat prevent an operator or a player of an EGM from manipulating theEGM's hardware and software in a manner that gives him an unfair, and insome cases illegal, advantage.

A third difference between EGMs and general purpose computing devices isauthentication—EGMs storing code are configured to authenticate the codeto determine if the code is unaltered before executing the code. If thecode has been altered, the EGM prevents the code from being executed.The code authentication requirements in the gaming industry affect bothhardware and software designs on EGMs. Certain EGMs use hash functionsto authenticate code. For instance, one EGM stores game program code, ahash function, and an authentication hash (which may be encrypted).Before executing the game program code, the EGM hashes the game programcode using the hash function to obtain a result hash and compares theresult hash to the authentication hash. If the result hash matches theauthentication hash, the EGM determines that the game program code isvalid and executes the game program code. If the result hash does notmatch the authentication hash, the EGM determines that the game programcode has been altered (i.e., may have been tampered with) and preventsexecution of the game program code. Examples of EGM code authenticationare described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,962,530, entitled “Authentication in aSecure Computerized Gaming System”; U.S. Pat. No. 7,043,641, entitled“Encryption in a Secure Computerized Gaming System”; U.S. Pat. No.7,201,662, entitled “Method and Apparatus for Software Authentication”;and U.S. Pat. No. 8,627,097, entitled “System and Method EnablingParallel Processing of Hash Functions Using Authentication CheckpointHashes”.

A fourth difference between EGMs and general purpose computing devicesis that EGMs have unique peripheral device requirements that differ fromthose of a general purpose computing device, such as peripheral devicesecurity requirements not usually addressed by general purpose computingdevices. For instance, monetary devices, such as coin dispensers, billvalidators, and ticket printers and computing devices that are used togovern the input and output of cash or other items having monetary value(such as tickets) to and from an EGM have security requirements that arenot typically addressed in general purpose computing devices. Therefore,many general purpose computing device techniques and methods developedto facilitate device connectivity and device compatibility do notaddress the emphasis placed on security in the gaming industry.

To address some of the issues described above, a number ofhardware/software components and architectures are utilized in EGMs thatare not typically found in general purpose computing devices. Thesehardware/software components and architectures, as described below inmore detail, include but are not limited to watchdog timers, voltagemonitoring systems, state-based software architecture and supportinghardware, specialized communication interfaces, security monitoring, andtrusted memory.

Certain EGMs use a watchdog timer to provide a software failuredetection mechanism. In a normally-operating EGM, the operating softwareperiodically accesses control registers in the watchdog timer subsystemto “re-trigger” the watchdog. Should the operating software fail toaccess the control registers within a preset timeframe, the watchdogtimer will timeout and generate a system reset. Typical watchdog timercircuits include a loadable timeout counter register to enable theoperating software to set the timeout interval within a certain range oftime. A differentiating feature of some circuits is that the operatingsoftware cannot completely disable the function of the watchdog timer.In other words, the watchdog timer always functions from the time poweris applied to the board.

Certain EGMs use several power supply voltages to operate portions ofthe computer circuitry. These can be generated in a central power supplyor locally on the computer board. If any of these voltages falls out ofthe tolerance limits of the circuitry they power, unpredictableoperation of the EGM may result. Though most modern general purposecomputing devices include voltage monitoring circuitry, these types ofcircuits only report voltage status to the operating software. Out oftolerance voltages can cause software malfunction, creating a potentialuncontrolled condition in the general purpose computing device. CertainEGMs have power supplies with relatively tighter voltage margins thanthat required by the operating circuitry. In addition, the voltagemonitoring circuitry implemented in certain EGMs typically has twothresholds of control. The first threshold generates a software eventthat can be detected by the operating software and an error conditionthen generated. This threshold is triggered when a power supply voltagefalls out of the tolerance range of the power supply, but is stillwithin the operating range of the circuitry. The second threshold is setwhen a power supply voltage falls out of the operating tolerance of thecircuitry. In this case, the circuitry generates a reset, haltingoperation of the EGM.

As described above, certain EGMs are state-based machines. Differentfunctions of the game provided by the EGM (e.g., bet, play, result,points in the graphical presentation, etc.) may be defined as a state.When the EGM moves a game from one state to another, the EGM storescritical data regarding the game software in a custom non-volatilememory subsystem. This ensures that the player's wager and credits arepreserved and to minimize potential disputes in the event of amalfunction on the EGM. In general, the EGM does not advance from afirst state to a second state until critical information that enablesthe first state to be reconstructed has been stored. This featureenables the EGM to recover operation to the current state of play in theevent of a malfunction, loss of power, etc. that occurred just beforethe malfunction. In at least one embodiment, the EGM is configured tostore such critical information using atomic transactions.

Generally, an atomic operation in computer science refers to a set ofoperations that can be combined so that they appear to the rest of thesystem to be a single operation with only two possible outcomes: successor failure. As related to data storage, an atomic transaction may becharacterized as series of database operations which either all occur,or all do not occur. A guarantee of atomicity prevents updates to thedatabase occurring only partially, which can result in data corruption.

To ensure the success of atomic transactions relating to criticalinformation to be stored in the EGM memory before a failure event (e.g.,malfunction, loss of power, etc.), memory that includes one or more ofthe following criteria be used: direct memory access capability; dataread/write capability which meets or exceeds minimum read/write accesscharacteristics (such as at least 5.08 Mbytes/sec (Read) and/or at least38.0 Mbytes/sec (Write)). Memory devices that meet or exceed the abovecriteria may be referred to as “fault-tolerant” memory devices.

Typically, battery-backed RAM devices may be configured to function asfault-tolerant devices according to the above criteria, whereas flashRAM and/or disk drive memory are typically not configurable to functionas fault-tolerant devices according to the above criteria. Accordingly,battery-backed RAM devices are typically used to preserve EGM criticaldata, although other types of non-volatile memory devices may beemployed. These memory devices are typically not used in typical generalpurpose computing devices.

Thus, in at least one embodiment, the EGM is configured to storecritical information in fault-tolerant memory (e.g., battery-backed RAMdevices) using atomic transactions. Further, in at least one embodiment,the fault-tolerant memory is able to successfully complete all desiredatomic transactions (e.g., relating to the storage of EGM criticalinformation) within a time period of 200 milliseconds or less. In atleast one embodiment, the time period of 200 milliseconds represents amaximum amount of time for which sufficient power may be available tothe various EGM components after a power outage event has occurred atthe EGM.

As described previously, the EGM may not advance from a first state to asecond state until critical information that enables the first state tobe reconstructed has been atomically stored. After the state of the EGMis restored during the play of a game of chance, game play may resumeand the game may be completed in a manner that is no different than ifthe malfunction had not occurred. Thus, for example, when a malfunctionoccurs during a game of chance, the EGM may be restored to a state inthe game of chance just before when the malfunction occurred. Therestored state may include metering information and graphicalinformation that was displayed on the EGM in the state before themalfunction. For example, when the malfunction occurs during the play ofa card game after the cards have been dealt, the EGM may be restoredwith the cards that were previously displayed as part of the card game.As another example, a bonus game may be triggered during the play of agame of chance in which a player is required to make a number ofselections on a video display screen. When a malfunction has occurredafter the player has made one or more selections, the EGM may berestored to a state that shows the graphical presentation just beforethe malfunction including an indication of selections that have alreadybeen made by the player. In general, the EGM may be restored to anystate in a plurality of states that occur in the game of chance thatoccurs while the game of chance is played or to states that occurbetween the play of a game of chance.

Game history information regarding previous games played such as anamount wagered, the outcome of the game, and the like may also be storedin a non-volatile memory device. The information stored in thenon-volatile memory may be detailed enough to reconstruct a portion ofthe graphical presentation that was previously presented on the EGM andthe state of the EGM (e.g., credits) at the time the game of chance wasplayed. The game history information may be utilized in the event of adispute. For example, a player may decide that in a previous game ofchance that they did not receive credit for an award that they believedthey won. The game history information may be used to reconstruct thestate of the EGM before, during, and/or after the disputed game todemonstrate whether the player was correct or not in the player'sassertion. Examples of a state-based EGM, recovery from malfunctions,and game history are described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,804,763, entitled“High Performance Battery Backed RAM Interface”; U.S. Pat. No.6,863,608, entitled “Frame Capture of Actual Game Play”; U.S. Pat. No.7,111,141, entitled “Dynamic NV-RAM”; and U.S. Pat. No. 7,384,339,entitled, “Frame Capture of Actual Game Play”.

Another feature of EGMs is that they often include unique interfaces,including serial interfaces, to connect to specific subsystems internaland external to the EGM. The serial devices may have electricalinterface requirements that differ from the “standard” EIA serialinterfaces provided by general purpose computing devices. Theseinterfaces may include, for example, Fiber Optic Serial, opticallycoupled serial interfaces, current loop style serial interfaces, etc. Inaddition, to conserve serial interfaces internally in the EGM, serialdevices may be connected in a shared, daisy-chain fashion in whichmultiple peripheral devices are connected to a single serial channel.

The serial interfaces may be used to transmit information usingcommunication protocols that are unique to the gaming industry. Forexample, IGT's Netplex is a proprietary communication protocol used forserial communication between EGMs. As another example, SAS is acommunication protocol used to transmit information, such as meteringinformation, from an EGM to a remote device. Often SAS is used inconjunction with a player tracking system.

Certain EGMs may alternatively be treated as peripheral devices to acasino communication controller and connected in a shared daisy chainfashion to a single serial interface. In both cases, the peripheraldevices are assigned device addresses. If so, the serial controllercircuitry must implement a method to generate or detect unique deviceaddresses. General purpose computing device serial ports are not able todo this.

Security monitoring circuits detect intrusion into an EGM by monitoringsecurity switches attached to access doors in the EGM cabinet. Accessviolations result in suspension of game play and can trigger additionalsecurity operations to preserve the current state of game play. Thesecircuits also function when power is off by use of a battery backup. Inpower-off operation, these circuits continue to monitor the access doorsof the EGM. When power is restored, the EGM can determine whether anysecurity violations occurred while power was off, e.g., via software forreading status registers. This can trigger event log entries and furtherdata authentication operations by the EGM software.

Trusted memory devices and/or trusted memory sources are included in anEGM to ensure the authenticity of the software that may be stored onless secure memory subsystems, such as mass storage devices. Trustedmemory devices and controlling circuitry are typically designed to notenable modification of the code and data stored in the memory devicewhile the memory device is installed in the EGM. The code and datastored in these devices may include authentication algorithms, randomnumber generators, authentication keys, operating system kernels, etc.The purpose of these trusted memory devices is to provide gamingregulatory authorities a root trusted authority within the computingenvironment of the EGM that can be tracked and verified as new. This maybe accomplished via removal of the trusted memory device from the EGMcomputer and verification of the secure memory device contents is aseparate third party verification device. Once the trusted memory deviceis verified as authentic, and based on the approval of the verificationalgorithms included in the trusted device, the EGM is enabled to verifythe authenticity of additional code and data that may be located in thegaming computer assembly, such as code and data stored on hard diskdrives. Examples of trusted memory devices are described in U.S. Pat.No. 6,685,567, entitled “Process Verification”.

In at least one embodiment, at least a portion of the trusted memorydevices/sources may correspond to memory that cannot easily be altered(e.g., “unalterable memory”) such as EPROMS, PROMS, Bios, Extended Bios,and/or other memory sources that are able to be configured, verified,and/or authenticated (e.g., for authenticity) in a secure and controlledmanner.

According to one embodiment, when a trusted information source is incommunication with a remote device via a network, the remote device mayemploy a verification scheme to verify the identity of the trustedinformation source. For example, the trusted information source and theremote device may exchange information using public and privateencryption keys to verify each other's identities. In anotherembodiment, the remote device and the trusted information source mayengage in methods using zero knowledge proofs to authenticate each oftheir respective identities.

EGMs storing trusted information may utilize apparatuses or methods todetect and prevent tampering. For instance, trusted information storedin a trusted memory device may be encrypted to prevent its misuse. Inaddition, the trusted memory device may be secured behind a locked door.Further, one or more sensors may be coupled to the memory device todetect tampering with the memory device and provide some record of thetampering. In yet another example, the memory device storing trustedinformation might be designed to detect tampering attempts and clear orerase itself when an attempt at tampering has been detected. Examples oftrusted memory devices/sources are described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,515,718,entitled “Secured Virtual Network in a Gaming Environment”.

Mass storage devices used in a general purpose computing devicestypically enable code and data to be read from and written to the massstorage device. In a gaming environment, modification of the gaming codestored on a mass storage device is strictly controlled and would only beenabled under specific maintenance type events with electronic andphysical enablers required. Though this level of security could beprovided by software, EGMs that include mass storage devices includehardware level mass storage data protection circuitry that operates atthe circuit level to monitor attempts to modify data on the mass storagedevice and will generate both software and hardware error triggersshould a data modification be attempted without the proper electronicand physical enablers being present. Examples of using a mass storagedevice are described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,149,522, entitled “Method ofAuthenticating Game Data Sets in an Electronic Casino Gaming System”.

Various changes and modifications to the present embodiments describedherein will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Such changes andmodifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope ofthe present subject matter and without diminishing its intendedtechnical scope. It is therefore intended that such changes andmodifications be covered by the appended claims.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A method of operating a gaming system, themethod comprising: communicating data that results in a display, by adisplay device and for a first play of a first game, of a firstplurality of symbols at a first plurality of symbol display positionsassociated with a plurality of reels, and responsive to an occurrence ofa symbol display position quantity modification event associated with areel of the plurality of reels: communicating data that results in adisplay, by the display device, of a modification of a quantity of thesymbol display positions associated with that reel, and responsive tothe modified quantity of symbol display positions associated with thatreel not being a designated quantity of symbol display positions,communicate data that results in a display, by the display device andfor a second play of the first game, of a second plurality of symbols ata second plurality of symbol display positions associated with theplurality of reels, the second plurality of symbol display positionsbeing based on the modified quantity of symbol display positionsassociated with that reel.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein themodification of the quantity of the symbol display positions associatedwith that reel comprises adding a quantity of symbol display positionsin association with that reel.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein themodification of the quantity of the symbol display positions associatedwith that reel comprises removing a quantity of symbol display positionsfrom being associated with that reel.
 4. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising, responsive to the modified quantity of symbol displaypositions associated with that reel being at least the designatedquantity of symbol display positions, determining, by a processor, anoutcome associated with a position of a secondary event zone associatedwith that reel, and communicate data that results in a display, by thedisplay device, of the determined outcome.
 5. The method of claim 4,wherein the determined outcome comprises a play of a second, differentgame.
 6. The method of claim 4, wherein the determined outcome comprisesan activation of a feature associated with the second play of the firstgame.
 7. The method of claim 4, wherein the determined outcome comprisesan activation of a feature associated with one of a plurality ofpositions of the secondary event zone.
 8. The method of claim 4, whereinthe determined outcome is associated with an award.
 9. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising, responsive to an occurrence of a reel resetevent in association with the second play of the first game,communicating data that results in a display, by the display device andfor a third play of the first game, of a third plurality of symbols atthe first plurality of symbol display positions associated with theplurality of reels.
 10. A method of operating a gaming system, themethod comprising: displaying, by a display device and for a first spinof a plurality of reels of the unlimited free spins game, a firstplurality of symbols at a first plurality of symbol display positionsassociated with the plurality of reels, and responsive to an occurrenceof a symbol display position quantity modification event associated witha reel of the plurality of reels: displaying, by the display device,modification of a quantity of the symbol display positions associatedwith that reel without modifying a quantity of the symbol displaypositions associated with another one of the plurality of reels, andresponsive to the modified quantity of symbol display positionsassociated with that reel being a designated quantity of symbol displaypositions, terminating, by a processor, the play of the unlimited freespins game.
 11. The method of claim 10, further comprising, responsiveto the modified quantity of symbol display positions associated withthat reel not being the designated quantity of symbol display positions,displaying, by the display device and for a second spin of the pluralityof reels of the unlimited free spins game, a second plurality of symbolsat a second plurality of symbol display positions associated with theplurality of reels, the second plurality of symbol display positionsbeing based on the modified quantity of symbol display positionsassociated with that reel.
 12. A method of operating a gaming system,the method comprising: displaying, by a display device and for a firstplay of a first game, a first plurality of symbols at a first pluralityof symbol display positions associated with a plurality of reels, andresponsive to an occurrence of a symbol display position quantitymodification event associated with a reel of the plurality of reels:displaying, by the display device, a modification of a quantity of thesymbol display positions associated with that reel, and responsive tothe modified quantity of symbol display positions associated with thatreel not being a designated quantity of symbol display positions,displaying, by the display device and for a second play of the firstgame, a second plurality of symbols at a second plurality of symboldisplay positions associated with the plurality of reels, the secondplurality of symbol display positions being based on the modifiedquantity of symbol display positions associated with that reel.
 13. Themethod of claim 12, the modification of the quantity of the symboldisplay positions associated with that reel comprises adding a quantityof symbol display positions in association with that reel.
 14. Themethod of claim 12, wherein the modification of the quantity of thesymbol display positions associated with that reel comprises removing aquantity of symbol display positions from being associated with thatreel.
 15. The method of claim 12, further comprising, responsive to themodified quantity of symbol display positions associated with that reelbeing at least the designated quantity of symbol display positions,determining, by a processor, an outcome associated with a position of asecondary event zone associated with that reel, and displaying, by thedisplay device, the determined outcome.
 16. The method of claim 15,wherein the determined outcome comprises a play of a second, differentgame.
 17. The method of claim 15, wherein the determined outcomecomprises an activation of a feature associated with the second play ofthe first game.
 18. The method of claim 15, wherein the determinedoutcome comprises an activation of a feature associated with one of aplurality of positions of the secondary event zone.
 19. The method ofclaim 15, wherein the determined outcome is associated with an award.20. The method of claim 12, further comprising, responsive to anoccurrence of a reel reset event in association with the second play ofthe first game, displaying, by the display device and for a third playof the first game, a third plurality of symbols at the first pluralityof symbol display positions associated with the plurality of reels.